Ryan McGovern- Landscapes of the Sacred, The Mountain That Was God 4-21-09

The Mountain That Was God.
One of the first things I noticed after reading this chapter in Landscapes of the Sacred was how Mt. Rainier can be considered a disputed place, which is one of Lane's definitions for Sacred Place. The mountain was named when a British explorer decided to name it after an admiral in the British navy. But the Native Americans had given it it's name first, which was Tahoma, or, the Mountain that was God. This is just another example of how a sacred place can be disputed. In the slide show in class, it was amazing to see how beautiful Mt. Rainier was. Lane seems to have had a very uplifting experience there. He was so happy with his experience that he thought that he should leave something as a token of his appreciation. He felt as though none of his material possessions should do, so he gave his blessing to many of the younger trees, wishing them the best on their journey to adulthood. I know what Lane is talking about here. I have said thank you to certain places before if they have given me a particularly uplifting experience. Whether it was a school, a field, a racetrack, or a wilderness area, I have known the feeling that Lane is talking about. He also goes on to talk about fog, which is something we touched upon in class. I personally love fog because it gives the world this mysterious quality, like you're looking at it for the first time again, or at least in a new way. The way it changes light and conceals things is also a metaphor for the mask of the holy that Lane talks about. Now I really want to go to Tahoma some day.