BY SUZANNE MILLER
I live in Montana. Vast prairie vistas nurture my senses and my soul. Crisp mountain air fills my heart, as well as my lungs. These mountains with their wide valleys and abundant rivers; these dramatic skies with ever changing cloudscapes, inhabit my very being. My life is bound to this place.
I live with animals. Soft furry ears; gentle knickers that call me near; quiet, inquisitive eyes tracking my every move; comical smacking of lips or joyful legs leaping into the air, punctuate my days and define my moods. They are my teachers; their raw vitality and total commitment to survival speak to me of the gift of life. My life is bound to theirs.
Moving through this incredible landscape in unison with my horse and my dog—beautiful sentient beings so very different from myself—brings me as close to God as I am able to get. Heightened senses, exhilaration tainted with danger, attention to every detail as the ground flies beneath our feet—we are bound together, acutely aware of every moment, every mile, every stone, and gust of wind.
It has always been thus for me. My parents dutifully took me to church in Butte, each week, where I earned my Bible through church school. Afterwards, they took me to the mountains to hike and fish. Every Sunday, I fought to pay attention to the teachings of the church. I heard the words; I thought the thoughts; but I didn’t feel the feelings. It seemed that my spirit did not accompany my body. It stayed outside waiting for the afternoon adventure that was sure to follow. It resisted the notion of finding majesty and life’s meaning in man made places or peace and awe in words alone. It needed to be outside.
In church, I contemplated good and evil, right and wrong. The lessons still inform my life. In nature, I have contemplated the mysterious act of living that we share with all others. I witness both the beauty and destruction that nature continually displays: A mother cougar kills a fawn to feed her own; a fire sweeps through the forest to open space for new growth. These acts are neither good nor evil, right nor wrong.
For me, God resides in the connections that bind us together, the shared experiences—those fleeting moments when eye meets eye with recognition of our mutual bond, our interdependence, and our shared life force. Surely it is good to strengthen those bonds. Surely it is right to extend heart, mind and hand in curiosity and consideration of all of life.
This spiritual connection I feel with nature, animals, and people underpins my desire to operate a guest ranch. It feeds my soul to see a child light up when she finds the confidence to trust and enjoy an animal many times larger and stronger than herself.
It moves me deeply to take a small group of riders to ancient tipi rings along Dupuyer Creek and sit quietly with them to let the spirit of the earth and the voices of the past whisper with the wind in our ears. I am filled with delight when I spend a night at a lookout with an astronomer helping our guests understand the beauty and mystery of the night sky. What better way to live?
Living in Montana with animals is such a privilege; one afforded to few in this world. I do not take it for granted. I am grateful every time I look out my window, every time I mount my horse and head into the hills, every time I share a quiet moment on the trail with my friends – both two and four legged. I treasure every moment I spend in my cathedral.
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My desire to capture this remarkable spirit of Montana has led me to organize a special expedition in September of 2011. We will go to the Rocky Mountain Front, where artists and writers will draw inspiration from and focus their talents on, this unique landscape. For more information, please visit This Montana Place.
Like this story? You may also enjoy these other Suzanne Miller blogs: Coming Home To Montana – Part I, Coming Home to Montana – Part II, and A Seasoned Horsewoman.
Back to Horse Around, Missoula blog home page.
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SuzAnne Miller is the owner of Dunrovin Ranch, a small guest ranch nestled against the Bitterroot River and the Sapphire Mountains, south of Missoula. She shares her home with her husband of 42 years, 2 sons, 20 equines, 2 or 3 dogs, the resident wildlife, and anyone looking for high adventure.
I don’t live in Montana, but since I was 10 years old, some of my best memories and my own connection to the earth were shaped in the same Cathedrals of stone, trees, and sky that SuzAnne eloquently described in this post. I cherish every opportunity I have to make the pilgrimage west to Montana. Dunrovin Ranch is an amazing place to enhance that journey!
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This evocation of your life could stand, for me, as a definition of integrity. As a “city mouse”, I could envy your connection to natural majesty, and high adventure. In fact, that’s probably why so many of city mice are involved with alcohol and drugs!! That’s as close to “high adventure” as we’re gonna get in an urban setting!
Montana has had a big problem with crack cocaine, so it’s NOT the environment—it’s the ability to adapt constructively to the environment. You’ve partnered with your place. That’s empowering!
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I can not wait until July when I have the privilege of visiting your “church”!!!!
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If only all children had the chance to commune with nature!
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You are so right about your connection to people and animals. You have created a space at Dunrovin that makes it impossible not to stop and talk to animals or people… so much going on out there. I find I need to come early and leave late when I go for a ride. We need more of these reasons to stop and talk in our lives.
Juliette
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You reminded me of Emily Dickinson’s poem ‘Some keep the Sabbath going to Church”. Hope to get over your way this summer and go to “church’ with you!
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My image of Montana is tough mean cowboys who would just as soon shoot you as look at you. Somehow, hanging around with horses seems to have made SuZanne amazingly sensitive and even taught her how to write.
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I, like Suzanne, find my closest contact with God while in the great outdoors. There is just such a heightened sense of all that went into this place we call Earth.
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I struggle to find the words if I try to explain to people that horses and nature are the home for my spirituality. You’ve captured it beautifully. Very well written. I’ve added you to my google reader and will look forward to reading more.
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Suzanne this is a great piece and something that so many can relate to. Your passion for the natural world reminds me of the work of John Muir. “Everybody needs beauty as well as bread, places to play in and pray in, where nature may heal and give strength to body and soul.” – John Muir
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SuzAnne, you’ve captured the metaphysical essence of the human relationship with landscapes with this beautiful piece. Thank you!
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SuzAnne, well done! I loved your descriptions of the truths you have learned from church and nature, humanity and the animals, on your sabbath days in sanctuaries both of cross and of sky. Rich faire indeed! It has been a pleasure to have been your invited guest at Dunroven, to enjoy the company of your family and of your beloved dogs and horses. Thank you for all you do to make this world a better place for all of us sentient beings.
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[...] this blog by Suzanne Miller? Chances are you’ll like her blogs about: This Montana Place, or Summer Sounds. Please leave comments below, or check out Suzanne’s other posts at [...]
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[...] this blog by Suzanne Miller? Chances are you’ll like her blogs about: This Montana Place, or Summer Sounds. Please leave comments below, or check out Suzanne’s other posts at the [...]
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