The Things I Forgot

Right now I am not in da Harbor. I am in Wisconsin to see family and friends for the holidays. I even made it all the way to Madison, WI. That is the place that inspired this post.

On a regular basis, I realize many aspects of living in da Harbor that are so precious and rare: no traffic, no chain stores, fresh air, friendly faces, etc. But as I was submerged in city, I was reminded of a few other things that I seem to have forgotten about while I was away. Things that I just thought were normal because I used to be part of the city.

Constellations. At night I looked up and saw Orion bright in the sky. That is nothing out of the ordinary, except for the fact that it was pretty much just Orion up there. Not the points of Orion speckled in with all the other stars like I see at home. In the city (unless you have a telescope), many people might think that the sky is made of constellations that astronomers have grouped and named. Not true. The sky is full of stars! Full of them! So many that sometimes it's hard to find those constellations among the sparkles. If you ever want to see some stars, come on up to Copper Harbor!

Airplanes. On a rare occasion in da Harbor, I will look up and see a jet in the sky. This might happen once a month to remind me that airplanes are above us, flying around in the big blue sky. But down on land, where planes actually fly over, I saw streams of planes. At one point, I could see so many that I noticed the "lanes" they used for going this way and that. What a thing to forget about at home!

Silence. To be outdoors in the city means I will hear a car, a horn honking or the rush of traffic in the distance. At home, I can hear nothing. Oh, I guess I will hear the wind or the bell buoy, but those are quite serene sounds. I understand that the sound of traveling cars may sooth some ears, but it certainly ruffles mine. I am grateful for the sounds of the natural universe.

I'm not knocking the city. It does serve a purpose (what that is will be left up to you to decide). I just thought you might enjoy to notice some of the subtle differences I noticed when going back to a heavily populated area. Those subtle differences are what make da Harbor Home Sweet Home to me.