Larger than life, or maybe an accurate representation...

Say "Hello" to Babe the Big Blue Ox, everyone! Yes, he is the guardian of the gates that lead to the Trees of Mystery in Klamath, California. And thus begins the long-awaited, much-anticipated California vacation recap. It has arrived, indeed.

Unfortunately, I have been writing all day long (first on a cover letter draft for a friend and then on a query letter), and I'm not sure how insightful and moving this post will be. Nonetheless, I wanted to share with you the grandeur that is the Redwood National and State Parks of Northern California. I believe that the scale truly is something that you have to see to understand, and I know from personal experience that pictures may be worth 1000 words, but they are not worth one real-life encounter.

That having been said, I borrowed a few pictures from my mother and am posting them for your viewing pleasure.













Here I am with a tree called the Brotherhood Tree, and just to give you some sense of scale, I am 5'9".

Isn't that outrageous? Again, and I can't stress this enough, you really have to be there to "get it." Now, this tree is one of the larger trees in that part of the forest, but they are all huge by any normal standard. It's not one big tree; it's an enormous forest full of them.

When I was standing among them, I couldn't help but imagine what the world must have been like hundreds (and in some cases, thousands) of years ago when those trees were saplings. Were there even bigger trees shading them? Can you imagine it? I know I can, and it's an amazing sight.

In summary, size does matter. The bigger, the more awe-inspired I'll be.