Small Towns

I love small towns. While my son Matt and his wife, Karissa, were studying in the law library, I went for a run through their little town of Buena Vista. The natives pronounce it "Buuna Vista", which ruins the whole charm of the lovely spanish meaning- beautiful view. And it is indeed a town with a beautiful view. Buena Vista is nestled in a valley with the Maury River running at the base of the mountains. There is a river walk alongside the river. From my walk on a raised grass path near the river, the mountains towered on all sides, covered with changing autumn leaves. No one else was on the path. Just me, and at one point, a groundhog. I saw a wood swing hanging from ropes looped over a tall tree's limb, overlooking the river. I wondered who put that swing there, and envisioned children swinging out over the water and then letting go, and splashing into the river below. A fairly active railroad runs next to the walk, and the cute historic town is just on the other side of the tracks.

It is a town that has seen better days. Many old buildings are empty, with boarded windows. Nonetheless, they have pieces of their old grandeur and charm still peeking through peeling paint and chipped bricks, and warped wood. On the side of one building facing the railroad, I could just barely discern an old advertisement painted on the brick, "Coca Cola, just 5 cents." Scrolled cornices topped some of the locked doors. One old home had a beautiful stone fence encircling the entire yard. A large Victorian style home was painted bright purple with a green roof. One small cottage tucked away on a side street was made of stone, and looked like it had been constructed for some fairy tale. I could almost picture Goldilocks playing in the yard.

I stopped in a little hardware store to make extra keys for my son. When I mentioned Matt's slow bathroom drain, the owner took me to shelves of products and then patiently explained exactly what I would need to do if I wanted to save $60 on plumbing and clean the trap myself. He smiled and told me to just call if I needed any help when I attempted the task.

As I meandered back to Matt's house, I thought how once this town had boomed. Many of the homes were large and elaborately constructed, with wraparound porches, white picket fences, and balconies facing the looming mountains. It is not booming now. It looks poor, many of the homes likely rented to college students, like Matt and Karissa. Some homes are crumbling into downright squalor. The few residents I saw were elderly. But it is a kind town, a peaceful place. Karissa told me there is almost no crime, and murder is unheard of. I felt safe all alone on the river walk path, though I always carry mace with me in case I meet a rabid chipmunk. As I waited at a crosswalk for a train to clatter by, I thought, "I could settle in a place like this, with the mountains standing like sentinels over me, and the river gurgling by, and the sound of the trains in the night."

In the Bible, when Lot is fleeing with Abraham from God's wrath upon the evil towns of Sodom and Gomorrah, he is an old man. He knows they have been told to flee to the mountains, but Lot is weary and finally begs Abraham to consider an alternative as they approach a small town. He asks to be allowed to settle in that small town, to be granted refuge and peace there. He is permitted to do so. He didn't end up remaining in that small town, but it was, however briefly, a place of respite for him. God seems to often pause our lives in the midst of catastrophe to give us a place to rest. He knows that sometimes we won't make it all the way to the mountain, not at first, and a small quiet place in the valley may be the place we need to settle for a time.

I wonder if Lot threw some ropes around an old tree leaning over the river, and then sat with a sigh on a wooden swing. Did he watch the clouds dance over the mountains for a while before traveling on?

Genesis 19:20 (NIV)
Look, here is a town near enough to run to, and it is small. Let me flee to it---it is very small, isn’t it? Then my life will be spared.”




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