There is a path along the Willamette River that leads to the Stafford Stones in Foothills Park. These stones have snippets of poet William Stafford’s “Lessons from the River” engraved on them.
“The stream is always revising. Water is always ready to learn.”
“A river that has one bank was lost.”
“The river lives by tributaries but also by innumerable little careful springs.”
If you continue on the path through Roehr Park and beyond, you will find park benches facing the water. Take a seat and let Stafford’s images settle into your being. Welcome your own musings about the river.
As you sit, you might find yourself mesmerized by the ever-flowing movement of the twinkling topside. Notice the humility, the buoyancy, the grace of the dancing waves. Open a space inside and let the water soften you. The surface is reflecting light and dark and redoubling the landscape that it mirrors. Feel the beauty.
Imagine the calm beneath the choppy surface. Let it search out that calm in yourself. The constant barrage of words in the modern world too often smothers our deeper understandings.
Imagine the relics from the past that lie beneath the surface. Their presence brings all of life, past and present, into this moment. Since we came from water and it is the foundation of our physical selves, you might wonder if the relaxation you feel is “like calling to like.” I do know that you will leave this time with the river with a renewed sense of vitality.
For over 20 years I canoed on multi-day float trips with women friends. We spent long days floating mindlessly. When we paddled, we had nothing else to do but take in the scenery, think and talk. We allowed ourselves to be entranced by the way the water drizzled off our paddles with every stroke. Minimal supplies. Meals cooked over fires from wood we collected from the gravel bars on which we camped. Nights spent under the Milky Way with our feet planted in the water sipping coffee laced with brandy. The babble of the river sang us to sleep. We gave ourselves up to the water on those days, going with the flow, aiming the prows of our canoes directly into the heart of currents. We accepted the shallow areas too, picking up our canoes to potage to the next deep spot. I would leave this time on the river and return to my workaday world refreshed and strong.
There is much to love about Lake Oswego. We don’t talk enough about the deep magic this area possesses because of our two bodies of water, the Willamette River and the lake. Without you even noticing it, these waters are daily nurturing and teaching you. How much more of this magic would be yours if you took the time to take in their lessons in beauty. Sitting long moments staring at the water and watching ducks and geese being welcomed to its surface can give a sense that you too belong to the world and are part of something that goes on and on. And, as the Stafford columns describe, you may discover those “innumerable little springs” in your own life.
Cherie Dupuis is a member of the Lake Oswego Jotters Club at the Lake Oswego Adult Community Center (jottings33@gmail.com).
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