99 - Go to Church

Dear David,

I had the best weekend with you. On Saturday we left home early and drove all the way to New Hampshire in the Big Red Truck. It was a very long drive for a little boy. But, you sat patiently in your chair in the back seat, all the way up to the White Mountains.

We had so much fun that afternoon at Story Land. We rode the Roller Coaster, the Log Ride, the Train, and the Balloon Ride, at least a half dozen times each.

You napped in the back of the Big Red Truck all the way back to the Hancock campground. We set up camp, got the fire going and ate our dinner. The we walked together down the path through the woods to the East Branch of the Pemigewasset River. It was nearing sunset and the path was getting gloomy. But, as we stepped from the trees to the bank of the river, everything was bathed in dreamy, golden sunlight. The river was clear and flowed strongly through the smoothed granite sluice it had carved out over a thousand years. The scent of winter snow was still wafting up to us from the surface of the water.

I have been coming to this river since I was a boy, and have hiked every mile of it. I know every bend and eddy. It is wild from beginning to end. No dams, houses or factories line its banks. Its waters are good to drink. I have soaked my feet in it after long hikes, and dove into its icy grip on sweltering August days. If any river, is my river, it is this one.

While I was momentarily distracted by this beautiful scene, and my memories, the figure of a naked four-year-old boy wading out into the current entered my field of vision. For reasons all your own, you had taken off your shoes, and every stitch of clothing, and decided to go for a dip. I didn't tell you to do it. You didn't tell me you were going to do it. But my own history of being inexplicably compelled to be in any nearby water, is well known. You chided me for not warning you that the water was so cold. I reminded you of the snow we saw in the Mountains earlier in the day, and told you that was where this water was coming from. You splashed and played in the icy water for a good half hour until the sun set. Then we went back to our camp and turned in for the night.

Sunday, we drove to the base of Mount Washington, and rode the Cog Railway to the summit. I know this mountain as well as I know the East Branch or the Pemigewasset River. I have climbed it many times, from all sides, and skied down all of its slopes. On climbing up, the finest moment was always breaking through the tree line, and seeing the great, steep expanse of boulder strewn ravines, rising to the brooding summit high above. It always made me feel honored to be in the presence of such awesome power embodied in stone. The same way as I feel when I enter the great cathedrals. It is something otherworldly here on earth.

There are many churches on earth, and many beliefs. I hope you find one you like. If you do, or don't, I hope you do find a way to be tolerant of what other people find worthy of believing. So many of our troubles find their source in differences of opinion about which beliefs and church are right. Try to avoid contributing to that nonsense, if you can.

The made up story I like to tell is this:

Everyone believes in Santa Claus. But one day, a group people decided to believe he has Eight Tiny Reindeer. Another group decided to believe he has Six Tiny Reindeer. So they then decided to have a big fight about it. They both believed that Santa will somehow influence the outcome of the battle, and then give the winner more presents. That's about sums it up.

There's also some intolerance between people who believe in books that were written a long, long time ago and, the people who believe in books that were written just recently. The people who believe in the books written a long, long time ago, think that the books written just recently are Fairy Tales. The people who believe in the books written just recently, believe that the books written a long, long time ago, are also Fairy Tales. They all argue a lot over which books you should read and teach.

You should try to read them all. Plus any new ones that come out while you are around. Especially books on science and mathematics. When your Brain gets hungry for a sense of wonder, science and math will give it a hearty meal. Nothing so easily dispels the clumsy notion that the universe exists as a result of some fortunate series of simple accidents, as a good book on Quantum Mechanics or Molecular Biology. You are a part of nature. So understanding nature is a good way to understand a lot.

Your church is your choice. You can worship where you please. Your church could be a Mosque, a Synagogue, a library, the East Branch of the Pemigewasset River, or the flanks of Mount Washington. But try to go, listen and learn, at least once in a while, and make your life your prayer.

Love,

Daddy