As I sat down to write
this article, I found myself drifting toward more contemplative and reflective
thoughts rather than the usual more technically-oriented subject matter. Maybe
it was because my family is leaving next week to our favorite sanctuary – the
North Shore of Lake Superior. So, this month I wanted to use this space to talk
about those special natural places that are special to us – our sanctuaries.
For me, there have been several such places in my life. There were special places I returned to time and again in the woods behind our house growing up near Mankato, Minnesota. I haven’t been back there for over 20 years and wonder sometimes how much it has changed. I now own 43 acres of the most beautiful woods anywhere in west-central Wisconsin. This is my main sanctuary now even though I don’t get to spend as much time there as I would like. Sadly, the pace of our lives doesn’t always allow us to slow down and take the time to bask in the sounds of the woods, waves, riffles or birds. But those places and those moments are so precious and restorative.
I’m sure you know what I mean by sanctuary. It is a place “away” from daily distractions – a refuge. There is something spiritual about these places that you can feel in your soul. The most beautiful church cannot make you feel the way these places do. There is nothing like laying on a warm rock in an out-of-the-way cove on a sunny fall day listening to the waves of Lake Superior and the occasional gull in the background. That is one of my “places” that I hope to be at next week. Probably with my four kids crawling all over me but I will steal away some private time too, even if only for a few minutes.
Mike Graham
