Something About Elevation

Upon visiting the Great Smokey Mountains

years ago, I was told by a long-time resident

that springtime climbs the mountains day by

day. Green begins in the valleys and lowlands

and spreads upward incrementally, until it

reaches the top. Hilly deciduous forests work

that way. In the Rockies, conifers lace the higher

elevations up to the tree line, and they remain

mostly green all year round. So, for me it was a

treat hiking uphill noticing the different stages

of growth, the death and lingering dormancy

along the trail. Being a native Midwestern flat-

lander, I am used to drab browns and winter grays.

Then all of the sudden one day, a flowering and

profuse greenery appears. It was then I realized

that springtime and I are mountain climbers,

heading skyward, a little closer to heaven one

step at a time, as renewal blooms each day.

Chris Hanch 5-14-19