Manic Monday - pines

Mo suggests the word PINES for this week's Manic Monday. When I was very young my family took a car trip through the New England states into Canada. We stopped in New Hampshire to visit the tourist attractions, Franconia Notch, the Old Man in the Mountains and Cathedral of the Pines. Mo's meme reminded me.

Cathedral of the Pines is a natural sanctuary, literally a "cathedral without walls," where all people may worship and seek spiritual renewal.

The dream of a Cathedral of the Pines began more than sixty years ago as a loving tribute to a son lost in battle. It is now a national memorial dedicated to the honor of American men and women, military and civilian, who have lost their lives in wars.

Open to all faiths, Cathedral of the Pines is an enduring monument to patriotic sacrifice. It is also an abiding testament to the universal kinship of mankind. And, above all, it is a haven for all who find peace, inspiration, and spiritual nourishment in the beauty and serenity of nature.

Altar of Nations

The memorial is located in the rolling hills of southwestern New Hampshire. Its over 200 acres of stately pine forests and formal gardens give way to panoramic views of neighboring mountains, including the most climbed mountain in the world, Grand Monadnock. This nearby 3,165 ft. peak offers extensive hiking trails and spectacular vistas that include all six New England states. Such American literary notables as Henry David Thoreau, Ralph Waldo Emerson, and Mark Twain have written of the innate spirituality of these mountains and the surrounding countryside.

Women's Memorial Bell Tower

Along with the natural and serene beauty of the Cathedral grounds, visitors find inspiration in its many unique stone shrines, altars, and gardens.

With frontier strength ye stand your guard,
With grand content ye circle round,
Tumultuous silence for all sound,
Ye distant nursery of rills,
Monadnock and the Peterborough Hills;—
~Thoreau

"Thanks Mom, Dad, and Grandma for the experience."

theteach