“Oh beautiful for spacious skies,
For amber waves of grain.
For purple mountain majesty above the fruited plains.
America, America God shed his grace on thee. And crowned in good with brotherhood from seas to shining sea.”
Words from the song “America the Beautiful” written by Katherine Lee Bates it’s original name “Pikes Peak. It is performed beautifully on piano by Ray Charles Jr. (Listen if you haven’t.)
This Independence Day, I am reminded of the beauty of America. Having stood in the majesty of its mountains. I am thankful for the grace God gives in each valley to every one of us.
Will the Grand Tetons be any grander than they are today? For me, an encounter up close, amid a pandemic they stood out like the crown of a good God, as a blind Ray Charles soulfully sings, detailing beauty. As high are the peaks and as low as the valleys, America is a brotherhood. In route across America today I share this photo with my brothers and sisters. This beauty is what America is made of. Beauty within a glacier valley. Big sky high beauty. Beauty in the bowing glacier lilies to a greater beauty. Beauty freely given in grace from a merciful God to an underserving people. Beauty in snow capped mountains rising from the fog. Beauty in my upbeat heart, literally, for the strenuous hike and the sighting of moose.
Today as we mask our faces, let us eye in awe how truly beautiful America is. In ourselves and each other let us be guided to find also the beauty of America.
Writingpambo 