Boiling Points

Dear Josie,

Your aunt was married this weekend.

I remember months ago, talking with family members about the event, carefully planning the babysitter who would take care of my three month old while I was away.  Your brother's birthday party offered a similar conflict.  Guests happily singing as I cut the cake, my mind anywhere but the table of ninja turtle plates and soggy napkins.  I kept searching the patio door, could swear I heard a baby cry.

The ceremony was beautiful, taking place at roughly eight thousand feet high.  We were in the mountains.  The most amazing spot for the most beautiful couple.  The most perfect place to begin a journey together. 

We visited Yellowstone while we were in town, which is something I have always wanted to do.  By far, my favorite part of the day were the geysers.  I have always been fascinated by them, their rarity, their specific geological requirements existing in only a few places on Earth. 

There are hundreds of them in the park.  Many are quite pronounced, drawing large crowds with their promise of intense release.  Others are small, seemingly one with the scenery as you nearly pass, clutching the rail as they shock you in a violent deliverance.

The most amazing observation had to be the colors.  Every picture of a hot spring in every textbook I have ever read hadn't done them justice.  Not even close. 

There were deep blues and greens, perfection in turquoise and maroon.  There was orange and blood red, browns and exquisite yellows.  It was as if someone had created them by hand for my viewing pleasure.  I had to remind myself that it wasn't a dream, that nature was responsible.  There is an explanation for this display.  To me, the very best part.

Initial visitors to the park would theorize that chemical properties in the water created this  variation in color; however this is incorrect.  The answer is life.

There are certain types of bacteria that can take the heat, that is to live in water too hot to touch.  Even more imposing is the fact that they are so perfectly adapted to these scalding environments, they can live no where else. 

The colors change depending on the time of year, sometimes even the time of day depending on the ratio of different pigments within the spring.  To be most accurate, it is not simply the bacterial presence, but rather their reaction to the sunlight that creates the colors.

I couldn't help but relate to them as I stood there.  The happy campers passing by, all the stares and the movings-on.  The intensity.  The deepest blue. The beauty boiling just beneath the surface.

I think I might have stayed forever.  Sometimes I can feel myself sinking in it, surrenduring to the extremity of it all as I search for the answer which is so rightfully mine.  For now I will smile, and imagine the day where I erupt beyond these earthly boundaries.  I can feel you then in some great capacity.  Warmth and brilliance in a million different hues. 

You may see me walking away but I can promise you I feel it. 

I can promise you I'm rising.

Love,
Mom





 
 

Comments

  1. That was so beautifully written. You have an amazing way with words!

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  2. "The answer is life." Not 42. The articulation of the beauty you witnessed is astonishing. Thank you for sharing these uplifting and inspirational words.

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