Michigan is my home, and home is where the heart is. Michigan is my heart and soul, I will never leave again. Michigan is like the hearth above the fireplace. She is the great mantle; where you place family photo’s of ancestors a century before. Michigan is your old fashioned log home, nestled in the pines and the Victorian houses lined along her shores. Michigan is your refreshment wherever you go; a story book of history, always ready to be told. Here I am I say, here to stay…..
“Welcome”, she says, “welcome to my fresh water, please do run and play along my shores, take a dip too, if you please. Cast your sails and fly your kites and wax your snow skis; run, skip, and walk along my shores and don’t forget to look for my Petoskey stones. Please do enjoy my never ending winding twisting nature trails to your hearts content. Welcome friend, welcome to my fresh air, breath my heavenly oxygen. Come and sit, let’s visit together like we used too, let’s talk about all the glorious days we have shared together.
“Come back to me” she whispers. “Have you forgotten? I am your home, I am your birthplace, I am the birthplace to your grandfathers and mothers, because it was your great grandfather who came and found me, he traveled across the big ocean and found my lakes; he called me his “home.”
“My trees gave you shelter and warm fires under your kettles. I shared my abundance of rabbits, squirrels and deer for meat on your tables. My streams replenished your thirst and gave you fresh fish to eat. My soil gave you acres of corn, soy and wheat; the apple, plum and cherry trees gave you delightful fresh fruit, just for a little extra special treat. Yes, I am; the land of milk and honey in the shape of a mitten, I can only hope that you will always remain smitten.”
“Please don’t forget me for I will always remember you. We go back a long ways, back into time and into the future we will go. I watched you grow up, and your children and their children too, for many a generation has come and gone, but I will always remain true to you. I’ll paint you a dazzling sunrise then bless you with an amazing sunset. I promise you my crystal clear lakes every day of your life and bubbling brooks through inland waterways. I’ll send you a kiss goodnight through the wind in the pines; I’ll wrap my arms around you disguised as the scent of fresh cedar and pine cones.”
“I’ll whisper ‘I love you’ every day you walk barefoot through my dewy green grass. At night I’ll light your way with a shimmering moonlight and I’ll kiss your eyebrow goodnight with the aroma of lilac. I’ll keep you awake with a layer of fresh snow and the icy cold air; for you see, I am with you faithfully in all my seasons, to the end my friend I’ll always be. Come back to me and restore your soul, for I await your arrival like a ship in search of her shore. Come back my friend; come back to me, your candle in the window, I am your lighthouse signaling land is near. Bring your ship into my harbor for I am your beloved and blessed Michigan home, your friend to the end I’ll always be.
Welcome home my long lost friend….”
