Streets of Gold

Heaven is under our feet, as well as over our heads. - Henry David Thoreau.

I had a dentist appointment in Boalsburg first thing in the morning. There had been a hard frost overnight, and the grass was covered in silver that sparkled whenever the sun hit it.

After my appointment, I took a quick drive through Boalsburg, just tooling around, and I looked up a hill in town to see this glorious sight: a shining pathway of gold, backlit with morning light.

The road made an enchanting turn into the distance, and it looked so inviting. Of course, you know how I am: I had to stop the car to get a better look. And so I jumped out and I walked a little ways up that shining pathway into the sun. The road was covered in leaves; mostly maple, I think.

The sight made me think about heaven, and about the streets of gold they talk about. And I wondered how heaven could possibly be more beautiful than Pennsylvania is in the autumn.

And I stopped a moment, and I was simply, deeply happy. I am grateful for the magic that lives inside the trees; that bursts forth with color in springtime, that greens up and grows full in the summer, and that covers our pathways with gold when autumn comes.

And I thought quietly to myself, in my deepest heart of all hearts: Heaven is right here. It is lying beneath our feet.

The soundtrack: I can't decide, so you win. You get to hear all THREE! :-)
Marc Cohn, Saving the Best for Last.
Natalie Merchant, When They Ring the Golden Bells (live, prerecorded)
The Eagles, Learn to be Still.