"We don't stop playing because we grow old; we grow old because we stop playing." ~George Bernard Shaw

"Look at everything as though you were seeing it either for the first or last time." ~Betty Smith, A Tree Grows in Brooklyn


Monday, October 11, 2010

Highway 26 as a Charm Bracelet

This week's Poetry Potluck theme is Beaches and Mountains
http://jinglepoetry.blogspot.com/2010/10/poetry-potluck-beaches-and-mountains.html
Well- living in Oregon we have 363 miles of coast along Highway 101.
But, that really didn't do too much for me.
Then I thought about Oregon's State Highway 26
that meanders from Astoria all the way to Nyssa, Idaho.
A mere 472 mile drive.
I began to think ( I was awake in the middle of the night) about all the
little towns that Highway 26 passes through
and voila! here's my little poem:
(a small caveat- all photos are from a free photo site.
I will eventually have the time to upload my own of all these places )
I Think of Highway 26 as a Charm Bracelet

Little towns linked together
by silvery rivers and waterways
Astoria has the mighty Columbia
where the Peter Iredale still sleeps
Passing through the Coastal ranges
of Clatsop and Tillamook
Chinook and Salish spirits in the trees
mix with Lewis and Clark



Onto the old city of Portland
Sometimes called Puddletown
Clackamas, Tualatin and Mollala
waters feed into the Willamette


Continuing east towards the Cascades
with sleepy slumbering volcanos
past Rhodedendron and Zig Zag
Mt Hood rises above the timberline

Over the summit, passing Frog Lake
and down into the Warm Springs
where the Deschutes River
meets the Crooked and Metolius


Through Madras and the Grasslands
Through Prineville and the Ochocos
to the Painted Hills, Fossil Beds
Strawberry Mountains and John Day River


I think about the Oregon Trail as
I see a sign for Baker City
But continue to my final stop
Nyssa and the awesome Snake River

17 comments:

  1. love charm bracelet metaphor,
    how timeless those mountains look.

    your poetry plus images are perfectly matched and thoughtfully constructed...
    Thanks for the support.

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  2. I love this write, and your photos seems perfect. I hope one day I will take that ride.

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  3. I am so glad to tag along with you..pure beauty..a lovely adventure!!

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  4. I too was interested in how timeless those vistas are. This year or thousands of years ago.

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  5. And such a beautiful charm bracelet it is Kathe! This whole post is just heavenly...:-)

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  6. Perfection for our theme at Potluck, so happy you linked and loved loved loved the read. Well penned my friend xxx

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  7. What an awesome geography lesson! This is such a wonderful poem.

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  8. An entire state captured in a few stanzas. Wonderful. I love the rhythm in the names and the metaphor of the charm bracelet.
    You are charmed, indeed!

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  9. Dear Snappy: The Oregon state is magnificent. Mt Hood, Shosone's inheritance (the native guide to Lewis and Clark). Nature.

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  10. Your photos are glorious! And the image of the highway "charm bracelet" is awesome!

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  11. a rather charming post...smiles. a lovely trip you take us on through the state.

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  12. Thanks for the support,

    next week's theme is "seven sins".
    hope to see you in again!

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  13. Anonymous4:31 PM

    Thank you for your amazing journey. The pictures and tour weaved into a poem are truly insightful.

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  14. you crafted your poem very well and put down a matching picture.Enjoyed reading it!

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  15. Is this a first? Travelogue with poetry accompaniment! Lovely, and for a foreigner, educational too.

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  16. Anonymous7:44 AM

    wow, beautiful country. brilliant with the charm bracelet, liked the poem.

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  17. I know that drive well and think it is magical the way you related it to a charm bracelet! Your photo of John Day Fossil beds is particularly stunning.

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