Cairn: a mound of rough stones built as a memorial or landmark, typically on a hilltop or skyline.

Cairns have been used throughout history in ways both sacred and profane. They can be seen as simple markers on a trail, left by one hiker for another to another to mark the way. They have been used as memorials and boundaries.

They are everywhere in our national parks. They serve as trail markers, tended to by Rangers, but also appear in places where no trails can go. Places where trails aren’t needed. Places where people have simply stopped and felt the need to mark an experience of the divine – to set apart the space where they have experienced the sacred. They are marks of holy grounds.

Look through the gallery and you will see them all over. On this day of Pentecost, may the holy blow through where you are, and may you know holy ground.

Psalm 1 Redux (from Psalms Redux, Poems and Prayers, by Carla A. Grosch–Miller)

Delights is born of discipline chosen.
Contentment grows with wisdom.
Deep listening leads
along a cairn marked trail,
dew clinging to grass bent
by pilgrim feet.

The sky is blue here.
Birdsong lifts the head.
A cool breeze caresses the cheek.
Legs grow strong like tree trunks;
arms branch flexibly
and dance with the wind.
From each finger drips
a ripening fruit.

The water is fresh and clear.
The plain is broad.
Come.