Nashville to Natchez and back again 1200 miles
An absolutely wonderful trip. So many good times and great adventure. Check back for pictures tomorrow.
Some final thoughts that were on my mind...
This trip of course was not exactly what I had planned. The riding was actually so much better. I only had the idea that it would be a beautiful ride. I had no idea how perfect it would be for riding a motorcycle. Nothing could be better. It was scenic, safe and smooth.
Brad rain out of gas, had to make at least 2 minor repairs and 1 major (major in the sense that it could have eliminated him from riding any further) and got banged up a little. I burned a hole in my favorite vest and burnt my finger pretty bad. I like fire. Things like this are not surprising me anymore.
The Natchez Trace likely started as a trail for animals. Then it was likely then used by Native Americans to travel to different hunting areas. One of the big reasons I wanted to go was to soak up some Native American culture. The maps of the Trace identify so many spots that seemed to be significant Native American landmarks. This part was a huge disappointment. The stops we made were busts. One that I really wanted to see was the Chickasaw village. It was a small piece of land with some markers about were some Chickasaw dwellings used to be. The map showed a progression of: This is were the Chickasaw were and then we forced them back, then this is where the Chickasaw were and we forced them back more.......on and on until we forced them out of this area all together shipped to Oklahoma............................
And now there is nothing left. Same with the Choctaw of the region.
And we visited a Mound. An area that may have supported a special dwelling. The sign had other words, but what I read is: "Here was a special place, we dug it up, moved it, excavated and eliminated others near it. Aren't we great for leaving some dirt here?"
So disappointing. So sad.
I didn't get nearly enough time to just sit. We traveled at a much slower pace than last year, and that was a big improvement. It is just hard to fit in a lot of miles and a lot of down time in just a matter of a few days. I had some things I needed to sort out in my head and didn't get enough time to do all of that.
For such a very long time, when Brad had hard days in the months preceding the trip, I would just say, text or email one word: Natchez. As if that was a word of magic that would heal anything he needing healing. Something to look forward too, something that would produce answers to the questions he had. By the time we left, the shoe was almost completely on the other foot, or at least we both had shoes on. And on the trip he was totally collected, together and seemed at peace almost throughout. As much as having our phones made it possible to blog and keep in contact with friends and family, they also produced reminders of the challenges that were waiting back at home. I have been sick and out of work for a week recently. Brad had been hard at work at his new job. And we both had things in our lives that we counted on heavily change. Things change. O says that is the only thing we can count on. It is so true. And so I will be back at home ushering in the next change.
"You have noticed that everything an Indian does is in a circle, and that is because the Power of the World always works in circles, and everything tries to be round...
The sky is round, and I have heard that the earth is round like a ball, and so are all the stars. The wind, in its greatest power, whirls. Birds make their nests in circles, for theirs is the same religion as ours....
Even the seasons form a great circle in their changing, and always come back again to where they were. The life of a man is a circle from childhood to childhood, and so it is in everything where power moves."
Black Elk (1863-1950) Oglala Sioux Holy Man
Some final thoughts that were on my mind...
This trip of course was not exactly what I had planned. The riding was actually so much better. I only had the idea that it would be a beautiful ride. I had no idea how perfect it would be for riding a motorcycle. Nothing could be better. It was scenic, safe and smooth.
Brad rain out of gas, had to make at least 2 minor repairs and 1 major (major in the sense that it could have eliminated him from riding any further) and got banged up a little. I burned a hole in my favorite vest and burnt my finger pretty bad. I like fire. Things like this are not surprising me anymore.
The Natchez Trace likely started as a trail for animals. Then it was likely then used by Native Americans to travel to different hunting areas. One of the big reasons I wanted to go was to soak up some Native American culture. The maps of the Trace identify so many spots that seemed to be significant Native American landmarks. This part was a huge disappointment. The stops we made were busts. One that I really wanted to see was the Chickasaw village. It was a small piece of land with some markers about were some Chickasaw dwellings used to be. The map showed a progression of: This is were the Chickasaw were and then we forced them back, then this is where the Chickasaw were and we forced them back more.......on and on until we forced them out of this area all together shipped to Oklahoma............................
And now there is nothing left. Same with the Choctaw of the region.
And we visited a Mound. An area that may have supported a special dwelling. The sign had other words, but what I read is: "Here was a special place, we dug it up, moved it, excavated and eliminated others near it. Aren't we great for leaving some dirt here?"
So disappointing. So sad.
I didn't get nearly enough time to just sit. We traveled at a much slower pace than last year, and that was a big improvement. It is just hard to fit in a lot of miles and a lot of down time in just a matter of a few days. I had some things I needed to sort out in my head and didn't get enough time to do all of that.
For such a very long time, when Brad had hard days in the months preceding the trip, I would just say, text or email one word: Natchez. As if that was a word of magic that would heal anything he needing healing. Something to look forward too, something that would produce answers to the questions he had. By the time we left, the shoe was almost completely on the other foot, or at least we both had shoes on. And on the trip he was totally collected, together and seemed at peace almost throughout. As much as having our phones made it possible to blog and keep in contact with friends and family, they also produced reminders of the challenges that were waiting back at home. I have been sick and out of work for a week recently. Brad had been hard at work at his new job. And we both had things in our lives that we counted on heavily change. Things change. O says that is the only thing we can count on. It is so true. And so I will be back at home ushering in the next change.
"You have noticed that everything an Indian does is in a circle, and that is because the Power of the World always works in circles, and everything tries to be round...
The sky is round, and I have heard that the earth is round like a ball, and so are all the stars. The wind, in its greatest power, whirls. Birds make their nests in circles, for theirs is the same religion as ours....
Even the seasons form a great circle in their changing, and always come back again to where they were. The life of a man is a circle from childhood to childhood, and so it is in everything where power moves."
Black Elk (1863-1950) Oglala Sioux Holy Man
Labels: Natchez
1 Comments:
reading this i feel like i'm sitting around a campfire with you. it sounds like this trip was more than you'd expected and better, but also not quite what you were hoping in some ways (clearing your mind etc).
i hope you took pics of some of those pics your reworded. that would be funny to read them, then your caption. hope to see you soon! get back here safe & sound! :)
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