Welcome to September! I hope you all had a lovely August.
My extended family traveled up to the Eastern Sierra to spread my father’s ashes, as he wanted. We stayed here,
as he did most summers for 50 years.
We made our way up to a high meadow. Some of us in an ATV,
(that is not my guitar, I was merely the guitar transporter, but it was fun to hold), and the rest on horseback,
to here.
We said our goodbyes. One way,
or another,
in a wild place where small flowers grow and peaks laze about.
Then we traveled back down the mountain.
I think we left no tracks, but there was a road home.
And I have felt so much more peaceful since. My experience of our family code has been, Do Excellent Work, and this, I think, as it were, was that.
Here’s to fertile blue skies with all the people you love.
Hope you are well, or on the way to better. Have a very good weekend.
29 Responses
June Lake? Beautiful.
Thanks! Buckeye Canyon:). But the same general area. It’s so gorgeous, unworldly really.
So peaceful and restful. Your father would have been happy. There’s a feeling of completeness.
Yes. Just how I feel. Thank you.
What a lovely ending to a life so well lived. You can almost see him come out of the cabin. I am certain he would be grateful to all who made it happen.
Luci
Thank you, Lucy. I can see him, now that you mention it, sitting on the porch in the afternoon.
This is such Excellent Work, you’re sharing this experience. Glad it brought you peace, and thank you for spreading it to all of us fortunate readers here. RIP Dad.
Aw thanks:). RIP Papa xox
You’re back! I’ve been looking forward to your Saturday post all week. What a lovely resting place for your dad, and what beautiful memories. I’m glad your August was peaceful and restorative and hope your weekend is full of love. Thank you for sharing your photos and thoughts with us, as always. xo
Thank you so much, Jess. I’m glad to be back.
Unbelievable sights. Absolutely wonderful. A perfect resting place for your Dad.
Thank you. And that’s how it felt. Like the perfect resting place.
Beautiful photos, capturing family fulfilling a parent’s final wish. Very moving. Well done.
And now I must make a note to visit this part of California. Looks like Wyoming!
Thank you. Yes, it’s not well known and it’s absolutely beautiful. Look up Bridgeport, CA, and hikes in the area. Also if anyone likes to fish…
Thank you for the inspiration. May his memory be a blessing.
Thank you.
Just lovely, may his memory be a blessing.
Thank you!
Gosh, that was lovely. What a wonderful way to say a final goodbye. We also said a goodbye this past month. To my mum who died in May. These rituals are important I think. xox
Thank you Sue. I loved your post about your mom, and your reading. I agree, rituals help us make meaning out of the inexplicable.
We tipped my mum’s ashes into the Thames at Rotherhithe, as she wished and as I had promised. You are right about the sense of peace. Right place, right time, right people.
Lovely, Annie. I can see this so clearly.
A very beautiful place and I’m so glad you were able to fulfill your dad’s wishes. Such a bittersweet experience.
Yes. A lovely kind of sweet, in some ways. Like tamarind, or pomegranates, instead of grapes.
Hello Lisa, What a beautiful and fitting send-off you and your family gave for your father. A grand spot that features an intimate and friendly aspect of nature, backed by mountains and grandeur. It reminds me (minus the waterfall) of the painting he chose for the cover of Scotland the Brave. ‘Bliss’ indeed!
–Jim
Lovely. Welcome back.
It’s nice to have you back.
Dad picked a nice place to rest himself.
Buckeye Canyon is one of my very favorite places on the east side, and the hot springs on Buckeye creek are an old hangout. It’s a beautiful place to commemorate a life. I
Thank you for sharing this experience and these beautiful photos with your readers, Lisa. I’m glad that my friend of almost sixty years will be spending eternity in a place he loves, and where so many happy memories were created for all of you. “Excellent Work” indeed!
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