Silver Linings Watching clouds tumble over Sheep Mountain into the west end of the Blackfoot Valley.<\/p>\n Against a cerulean sky, clouds in all variations of shapes and sizes drift one after another,<\/p>\n Stacked tightly like the sterling silver teaspoons in my Mother\u2019s antique box.<\/p>\n Shadows of cloud silhouettes trace the faded travois marks on the Kokalahishkit Trail below,<\/p>\n Traveled for centuries by the Salish and Kootenai Indians on their journey to the bison hunting grounds.<\/p>\n I live in the Land of the Big Sky,<\/p>\n Where nature\u2019s m\u00e9lange of wildlife, mountains, rivers, and sky all blend into one grand seamless landscape.<\/p>\n Yet, against that backdrop I watch a foreboding sky,<\/p>\n Wondering if dark clouds might be a harbinger of a perfect storm.<\/p>\n Some days, my perception of life is upside down,<\/p>\n I see colossal Ponderosa pines and feathery wisps of prairie smoke float aimlessly above me, untethered in a world gone awry.<\/p>\n Other days, I am centered and recover my balance,<\/p>\n Standing steadfast on sacred ground, I breathe deeply and watch the clouds drift in ebb-and-flow down the length of the valley.<\/p>\n I am learning that humanity, like clouds, has deckled edges,<\/p>\n A contrast between translucent and opaque.<\/p>\n In the evening, when the sun\u2019s last rays illuminate the western sky, some clouds have silver linings,<\/p>\n And I am inspired to face another day.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n Deborah Houlihan O\u2019Connell<\/a> lives with her\u00a0husband, two horses and two dogs on the bank of the historic Blackfoot River in northwest Montana. Known as the Crown of the Continent<\/em>, it is one of the last contiguous untamed landscapes in the United States. Her\u00a0writing is inspired by our inherent connection to nature and the importance of protecting our wildlife and open spaces.<\/p>\n While earning a BFA in Journalism, she interned and freelanced in both radio (NPR) and print and was published in newspaper and trade publications. Despite intentions to pursue a career in writing, life got in the way \u2013 marriage, children and a 30-year career in the corporate world. She has just retired this spring and is\u00a0finally back full circle, doing what she loves most.<\/p>\n This poem was written in response to Rituals<\/a>,\u00a0a creative writing challenge created by Jane Clarke<\/a> as part of the 2020 Inside Writing<\/a> showcase.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" Silver Linings Often anxious, I spend hours outside in contemplation, Watching clouds tumble over Sheep Mountain into the west end of the Blackfoot Valley. Against…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":3236,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[6],"tags":[716,664],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"http:\/\/archive.nclacommunity.org\/content\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3388"}],"collection":[{"href":"http:\/\/archive.nclacommunity.org\/content\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"http:\/\/archive.nclacommunity.org\/content\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/archive.nclacommunity.org\/content\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/archive.nclacommunity.org\/content\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=3388"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"http:\/\/archive.nclacommunity.org\/content\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3388\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":3393,"href":"http:\/\/archive.nclacommunity.org\/content\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3388\/revisions\/3393"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/archive.nclacommunity.org\/content\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/3236"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"http:\/\/archive.nclacommunity.org\/content\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=3388"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/archive.nclacommunity.org\/content\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=3388"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/archive.nclacommunity.org\/content\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=3388"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}
\n<\/strong>
\nOften anxious, I spend hours outside in contemplation,<\/p>\n