The Equinox
Only one place feels right to mark the Autumn Equinox - Kelly Island.
ADVENTURE ART CLUB | DAY 22 | 9.22
KELLY ISLAND
CLARK FORK RIVER, MT
I know that this spot is popular among revelers all Summer long, but, for me, Kelly Island is sacred. There’s a particular kind of magic that finds me here on the sandy paths between ancient cottonwood guardians that take me to the rocky shores of the Clark Fork. I only arrive here in the evenings, typically during the dinner hour and right before sunset, when river bathers and screaming groups of teenagers and families calling back and forth have all departed. Maybe that’s why my experience of this place feels different. My meandering with this land feels quiet and personal. I hold my experiences here closely, and I have felt….magic….wondrous and unexpected, here on these shoreline.
Today is the day of the Equinox - a time when light and dark are served to us in equal parts. I firmly believe our mission in life is to build capacity around holding the nuance of light and dark at once. There’s no such thing as black or white, good or bad. Life is everything all at once all the time. Laughter and sadness persist intertwined within all experience. Life and death move as one. I experience today as a reminder of this practice.
Here, at Kelly Island, the dead limbs of the cottonwood trees form a sharp contrast to the lush green leaves beside them. The fading colors of the understory as leaves drop to earth and decay parallels the brilliant bloom of wildflowers in these same spots in the spring. I walk beneath them in utter reverence. Walking through these towers in the evening feels like walking through a cathedral.
Getting closer to the river, I bend my head to walk through tangled tunnels of living trees and shrubs that feel like magic portals, bringing us closer to the source of all life - the water. The trail runs along a cliff’s edge bank, and the tension of steps placed so close to air excites.
Eventually, we find ourselves on the rocky shore that extends much farther out this time of year than before. The water has receded, and land that was submerged is now exposed to sun and travel.
We wander to and fro by the water, admiring the way the light plays along its surface before doubling back to few tangled trees I know that are sheltered by the shoreline. It’s private there, so I spend some time in a witchy practice of gratitude and intention, led solely by my intuition. The land is my church, and my little ritual feels right to mark the change of seasons.
I’ll leave the bulk of that adventure on the land between me and the water’s edge, unshared.
Just before I leave the river, I sketch some tall trees on the opposite bank. This sketch feels loose, almost abstract, reflecting the open handed surrender I feel here. I am at peace. Connected.
This whole time Scout has bounded here and there, exploring patiently. As we turn to go he leaps up onto the fallen trees before us in abundant joy. I join him, balanced on the edge.
Then, looking up, I laugh out loud at the sight of the most….incredibly vibrant sunset before us. No pictures can do this justice. It’s practically neon! The pinks feel like an open gift of love from a benevolent world. I’m immediately enlivened and filled to the brim with joy.
This often happens to me here... I engage in moments of silent depth or intentional reflection. I give the land my engagement, appreciation, and reverence. Then, as I turn to leave, I’m met with some authentic burst of energetic brilliance. Joy personified. The last time I was here, this was the bursting flight of countless birds above me, as if from nowhere. The visit before, it was the purple hues of dusk descending with a soft rain as I found a treasure stone of black and white, perfectly balanced. This place is special. A heart can be heard here.
Scout bounds through the grass with the limbs of nearby trees as we make our way back beneath the cottonwoods to where we started. The sunset has joined us, painting brilliant pinks and blues beyond their silhouettes. Then, all at once, I glance at a gap in the trees to find the moon there, soft and luminous.
Softly obscured by airy clouds, taking on the quality of a dreamscape, this vision feels like a parting gift.
Love & Gratitude,
- Christina
