Tag: appalachia
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The White Oak on the Hill: A Meditation on Roots and Presence
I lift up my eyes to the mountains – where does my help come from? Sometimes I have to find Ralph Stanley’s version of “The White Oak On a Hill” and start playing it. Ralph’s unique voice matches the geology of “my old Clinch Mountain home” as his voice wavers somewhat like a mountain stream,…
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Changing Culture in the Mountains
I don’t really know what compelled my ancestors to seek out a place as far back up the holler as they could get to scrape out an existence. Were they running from something or someone? Were they just plumb tuckered out at dealing with people? Were they living out a calling of some kind to…
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What is it About Mountains?
There’s something deeply moving about mountains. Now I’m not going to be selective or discriminating in this, I think all mountains have beauty, regardless whether they are rugged, rocky, treeless peaks or these lovely forested ridges we see everywhere in the Central Appalachian section of the United States. Mountains give us the feeling of security,…
Back Up the Holler 