unearth : Mount Rushmore & Crazy Horse

Thursday January 7, 2016 9:36am
Denver, CO

Holy shit! It's been 7 days of traveling, thinking, exploring and driving of course. It seems like the mornings are the time the thinking creeps in, the emotions set in, the reflecting happens. I have been trying to stay in the moment as much as possible - not dwell in the past, not worry about the future. However, I am human. It happens - often. It is pretty odd to not have a plan, to a certain extent. Its freeing most of the time. Like, everything will work out, but I have to do some footwork - not create the blueprints, if that makes any sense.

Yesterday I checked out of the hotel in Rapid City, SD around 11:00am, got some Zicam and cough drops and headed to Mount Rushmore. I see all these signs for cool places to check out, but most of them are closed for the season. Mount Rushmore is exactly what you are probably thinking - a giant rock with faces carved into it. It is interesting to think of how they did this so many years ago with the equipment available at that time. There were no tours or anything like that running, so I just came up with my own theory. I could probably read a book or do some research online - one day, maybe.

I went to Crazy Horse after that, which I found to be much more interesting - probably because they showed a video on how it came to be. When Mount Rushmore was being done and they used "hero's" faces, Henry Standing Bear contacted Korczak Ziolkowski and asked him if he would carve Crazy Horse so that the white man would know that the red man has heroes too. Crazy Horse was remembered for not signing a treaty and telling the white men that his land is where is people lie buried. He was stabbed in the back by a white man during a truce ceremony. Being there really brought to life what the native people went though all those years ago - and to some extent, still go through. Imagine someone coming into your home and telling you to leave or they were going to kill you. That is so messed up - just my opinion. Anyway, the Crazy Horse Memorial has been in progress since 1948 and is only funded by visitor admissions, gift shop sales and donations. So it will take some time to be finished.

I spent about 2+ hours at Crazy Horse and talked with two different women - nothing in particular. They were really nice and our conversations just reminded me that I am on my path - to I don't know where really, but I am heading in the right direction. It was nice to talk with nice people.

In between Mount Rushmore and Crazy Horse Memorial, I stopped at a pull off point somewhere in the Black Hills. The views were really breathtaking. I wish I got more pictures. I guess they will just be memories. Herold and I went behind the gate - I know, we are rebels - and climbed on some rocks. It was so quite, aside from the many different birds and critters we saw and heard. We sat on a rock for awhile, just took it all in. This is probably the best moment of the whole trip so far - just sitting on the earth, staring at the Black Hills forest, no cars or traffic, just the sound of nature, breathing fresh air, no where to be - just being present. I found some really cool rocks and I can't wait to show my grandma. I think of her a lot, especially when I find really neat rocks.

Leaving Crazy Horse, we saw probably 200 turkeys just hanging out. Herold was like, "What are they?!" Then I stopped to take pictures of the sunset and when I got out of my car a prairie dog jumped into it's hole. I also saw more cows than people yesterday, there's no doubt about that. Oh, and I saw some deer too. One thing that I take for granted is the stars - they were so bright after the sun finally set. Let's just say that mother nature is remarkable and I am grateful to be in tune with it.

It was nearly dusk when we headed for Denver. The sunsets seem like they last forever, which I love. I was the only one on the road for a long time. I didn't have service on my cell phone for most of the drive. Thank god I brought CDs. I jammed out to the Eagles and The Doors. And when I say jammed, I mean like air guitar, air drums, lead vocals. I was entertained. Herold - not so much. I probably embarrassed him. Arrived to the hotel in Denver around 10:00pm. I slept well and am just relaxing before starting the day.

The plan for the next few days is to spend time with family, go to Garden of the Gods, and just try to relax and process some feelings. Everything will make sense one day - not today, but one day. Trust the process, one foot in front of the other, help others.