A Mountain Top Experience

by Neva Bodin

The sweet spicy smell of sap mixed with the cooling mountain-tainted breeze, which whispered through the pine trees. Invisible fingers played pine needles like they were fine instruments. The squirrels occasionally chattered staccato comments.

The mountain grasses, like metronomes, waved rhythmically back and forth, and alpine asters smiled as mountain sunflowers nodded their heads in approval.

Flashes of cobalt blue announced the mountain bluebird audience, seen among hovering emerald green humming birds.

And God sat back in his chair and laughed.

I wrote the above while sitting in the woods on our nearby mountain top. Our writing group had been invited to Gayle Irwin’s cabin for a writers retreat. We snack, share, wander into the woods by ourselves to write amidst the trees, and in general leave feeling refreshed in spirit and writing minds.

We were invited again recently, and found ourselves amongst friends that inspired, shared, and allowed us to support and enjoy comradery. It’s not that we all write the same genre or have the same beliefs about life issues. But we are all committed to encouraging and helping each other be the best writers we can be. And we accept each other’s ventures.

Writing critique groups are important, but the tone set at them is also important. I encourage anyone interested in writing to form a critique group, write some basic rules about how to critique, how to ask for help, and what’s the format of the group.

Our group eats finger foods brought by members, visits, and catches up on news which breaks the ice, especially when we have new members. Then we settle down to critiques, sharing information others might be interested in, and congratulating fellow members on accomplishments.

And, I wish for everyone, a mountain-top experience.