Above It All

We’re staying at the Guest House Rojiura. Nothing special, but it’s clean, the shower’s hot, and the price is right.

It’s on a quiet street,

a little house next door,

and around the corner a rabbit,

and a phone booth,

should I lose my charger, or something worse.

There’s a young woman at the Rojiura with whom we spoke last evening, and again this morning. She asked about our plans for the day, to which we replied we had none. A resident of Osaka, she visits Beppu annually and thus knows a thing or two.

“You must visit Mt. Tsurumi. I do every time I’m here. Take the No. 1 to the base. From there, the cable car to the top. When you arrive, you will be above it all.”

It being a sunny day, we walked the short distance to the station, Freddie in tow.

Pa had suggested Freddie join us, being he’s our name sake and all.

“And besides,” said Pa, “you're never too young to go on an adventure.”

Though it’s a long way up,

Freddie enjoyed every minute of the ride,

and as we slowed to dock,

he announced rather emphatically,

“Again!!!”

Back on solid ground, the young woman was right,

it seemed we could see forever.

We took our time looking around,

but Freddie grew restless, so Pa suggested a hike.

Of the two possibilities,

Pa and I weren’t certain which the best.

But Freddie knew,

and we followed his directive,

though not long after,

a another decision had to be made.

“Fred and Freddie, there are times when it’s good to test oneself. This is one of them.”

The vote unanimous, we pressed on . . .

Into the woods,

then above them,

and into them again,

where we came upon a path,

which led to a pillar,

beyond which a sentry,

and a strange land.

I was hesitant to proceed, but Pa was firm:

“We’ve come this far,”

so we moved on.

While stern in some respects,

and foreign to our ways,

these were friendly people,

to whom Freddie took a liking.

Parting ways, we came upon a marker,

with a message we couldn’t decipher.

But somehow Pa knew its intent, and quoted Joseph Campbell:

We have not even to risk the adventure alone,

for the heroes of all time have gone before us.

The labyrinth is thoroughly known,

we have only to follow the thread of the hero path.

And where we had thought to be alone

we shall be with all the world . . .

Beyond the marker was a precipice,

the air rarefied and the sky luminous.

The walk down was easy from there,

and soon enough,

a signpost,

and a path,

returning us to our world.

Back on firm ground, Pa looked back and pointed up.

“It’s good at times to visit the high places, to get above it all.”