A Mountaintop Experience

This past weekend Dave and I drove down to Hiawassee, GA to visit family.  My folks and  brother Scott and his wife Debbie live there; my brother John and his wife, Quyen were also visiting from New Mexico.  It was a mini-meeting of the clan; just half of the siblings and no grandchildren so the weekend was relatively calm and quiet.

The drives down and back were beautiful; spent mostly on four lane highways traversing the Appalachian mountains.  There were breathtaking views from almost every direction; vistas of green peaks with pluming mist rising like smoke from chimneys.  If it weren’t for the long stretches of kudzu draped trees, it would have been perfect.  Kudzu just makes me sad.

Like the sea, I never sate my appetite for more mountain views.  On Sunday afternoon the six of us “kids” borrowed Dad’s van and took a drive up to Brasstown Bald, the highest peak in the state of Georgia rising almost 4,800 ft.  From atop the visitor center you can see for miles.  My new header photo was taken from that vantage point.

It wasn’t the clearest of days, but depending on which direction we faced, we could see sun, wispy clouds and even a threatening thunderhead.  Since we brought umbrellas with us, it naturally didn’t do more than sprinkle. As a special treat, Smokey Bear made an appearance at the Visitor’s Center while we were there.

It was great fun to spend time with my brothers.  The last time we went on a little spin like that was more than thirty years ago.  I’m not clear on the details, but it involved some kind of panel van and I’m not sure we even all had seats!  Time passes so quickly.  You spend your childhood in the close nest of your family, grow up and slowly ease away.  The, one day you realize that decades have passed since you’ve spent time with those who were with you almost every waking hour so long ago.  The squabbles over television channels, torments of teasing and giggles over bodily functions (these are my brothers after all) have knit us together like an old sweater.  The fabric may have be worn in a few places, but all in all, it’s still a comfortable sweater and best of all, no matter whether our sizes go up or down, it will always fit!