The Bittersweet Beauty of The West

Although I alluded to this on my Roswell post, I really don’t think you guys realize just how barren and empty this land out here is. For years I have thought that Spartanburg was rural, but these past couple of days traveling through the southwest have helped me realize what rural really means. Just to offer a point of reference, on the list of “area” attractions for Roswell NM, they listed Carlsbad Caverns. This might not seem like a big deal, but after driving 100 miles to get to the caverns, I realized that a local equivalent of this would be to list downtown Columbia on a list of area Greenville attractions. I guess when there is just nothing around, people are more willing to drive long distances for any semblance of civilization. At one point we had to turn around and get gas in the town we had just passed because our GPS told us that there were no other gas stations for over 60 miles! For the first time I think I understand why underground polygamist cults seem to be so prevalent in the southwestern deserts…these people are just bored and have nothing else to do! (By the way, another polygamist cult was busted right here in New Mexico during our stay.)

There is, however, a mysterious beauty in such seclusion. On Wednesday night, we stayed at Bottomless Lakes State Park about 15 miles away from anything you would recognize as a road. When we pulled up at the information office to pay for the night, there was not a soul in sight. We wandered around aimlessly for a couple of minutes and I began to wonder if indeed the rapture had happened and for some reason I had missed the boat. We finally just stuffed $10 into a mail slot, and made our way to a secluded desert camp site overlooking a small lake. The extreme seclusion we experienced for the rest of the night as we talked, played baseball, ate, and thought was indeed a refreshing experience. I love to be around cities, and I am most drawn to urban areas, but every now and then we just need to get alone with our thoughts. In the commercialized frenzy that is American culture, virtues like solitude and silence have been almost completely lost, but they are extremely important. In his book Telling the Truth, Frederick Buechner comments on the incredible spiritual importance of silence and meditation. He explains that silence is beneficial to the individual Christian and the community of believers but we almost never allow it in our churches “because it says too much.” Lit up by the unusually bright stars, and feeling like we were the only people on the earth, we had a great night of conversation about the complexities of home, travel, God, and the female brain. Do not be fooled, there are some aesthetic and spiritual experiences to be had in the vast deserts of New Mexico.

We are in the way to the Grand Canyon now and the scenery looks…the exact same. All benefits of silence aside, if I don’t see some people soon, even I am going to look into the social benefits of a local apocalyptic death cult.