This is a hallowed land.
A sacred place,
consecrated by
the holy waters
of this mountain stream.
Where words rush by
in mystical motion.
Incomprehensible.
Inscrutable,
yet profound.
© 2026 Richard Havenga
Photo Location: Arkansas River - Buena Vista, Colorado
My legs brush the sage
hanging over the trail.
I crush the pale green leaves
and rub them between my hands.
Inhale the masculine scent
that blankets these high plains.
Continue along this trail
that rises with the foothills.
The higher mountains beyond,
remain always in view.
While following the path
scented with sage.
© 2026 Richard Havenga
Photo Locations:
1. & 2. Grand Teton National Park - Wyoming
3. San Juan National Forest - Colorado
Enchanted by mountain streams,
I sit in my camp chair
and watch the Blackfoot River
flowing past Ponderosa Pines,
carrying water music to my ears.
On the high slopes,
Aspens whisper secrets
between branches of trembling leaves.
I wait with patience
for some suitable words to appear.
Words worthy of mountain streams
lined with Aspen and Ponderosa.
© 2026 Richard Havenga
Photo Locations:
1. Blackfoot River - Greenough, Montana
2. La Plata Mountains - Colorado
When we decide to slow down,
to leave the phone at home,
and go outdoors to engage in
intentional listening,
we will be practicing
the concept of yutori.
And we will be rewarded
as we contemplate
our life space,
and express gratitude to God
for our experiences outdoors.
A soft breeze whispering through
the fine needles of White Pine.
Birdsong streaming from
the density of green woods.
The rapids of a mountain stream
rushing over rocks, splashing boulders.
The faint chirp of crickets
on a late summer evening.
Gifts we can give ourselves.
When we decide to listen.
© 2026 Richard Havenga
Photo Locations:
1. White Pine - Townsend Park - Kent County - Michigan
2. Indigo Bunting - Cannonsburg State Game Area - Kent County - Michigan
3. Taylor River - Gunnison County - Colorado
Even clean air,
seen through many miles,
like in western Wyoming,
or the Colorado Rockies,
can haze the distant mountains.
I am out here, attentive,
wrapped in time's presence.
Ready for an elk sighting,
a moose in a lake,
or a distant meadowlark
making music
from his throne
on a wooden fencepost.
In between the meadowlark's calls,
in the space between mountains,
God speaks in silence.
I am out here.
Listening.
© 2026 Richard Havenga
Photo Locations:
1. Rocky Mountain National Park - Colorado
2. Telluride, Colorado
3. Grand Teton National Park - Wyoming
4. & 5. Mancos, Colorado
It's difficult to translate
the meaning of words
the mountain stream carries
as it hurries through the canyon;
bashing big boulders,
splashing through the rapids.
Elsewhere, the poetry of water slows
and swirls into clear pools;
transparent with nuance,
tranquil with meaning.
I kneel for a closer look.
Fine grasses and golden sky light
reflect on the smooth surface.
Through the clear lens of water
I examine the bottom of the pool
and read in the rippled sand
the words collected there:
Slow down. Be still.
Observe the smallest
contours of creation.
But this poem
does not end
here.
© 2026 Richard Havenga
Photo Locations:
1. Arkansas River - Buena Vista, Colorado
2. Rocky Mountain National Park - Colorado
3. Santa Catalina Mountains - Arizona
The inner landscapes of my mind
have been shaped by a language
learned and discerned
from connections with nature.
Mountains, meadows, woods and fields.
Rivers, lakes, oceans and streams.
They blend together to become
the geography of my dreams.
© 2025 Richard Havenga
Photo Locations:
1. Canyon de Chelly - Arizona
2. Wyoming
3. West Elk Wilderness - Colorado
From afar,
I have always loved
small herds of horses,
and the mountain meadow
pastures where they live
with apparent contentment.
These large, beautiful animals,
grazing in the grass,
in the shadow of mountains.
I can sense
a peaceful, easy feeling
of intimacy with the land.
© 2025 Richard Havenga
Photo Locations:
1. & 2. Grand Teton National Park - Wyoming
3. Cut Bank, Montana
Hiking in these mountains
is like moving meditation.
The small sound
of boots on stony ground.
Golden aspen leaves
fluttering in a light breeze
become a soft orchestra
in the background.
High in the cloudless sky,
a Red-tailed Hawk
pierces the moment
with its captivating cry.
© 2025 Richard Havenga
Photo Locations:
1. Ouray, Colorado
2. Ridgway, Colorado
3. Rocky Mountain National Park - Colorado
Confortably content
in this remote wilderness,
we climb the shoulder
of this massive mountain.
Feel its dependable permanence.
We've escaped the noise
of the world left behind
and follow this hiking trail
into the silence.
© 2025 Richard Havenga
Photo Locations:
1. West Elk Wilderness Area - Colorado
2. Grand Teton National Park - Wyoming
Shadows of twilight
smothered the foothills,
climbed the mountain heights.
Last spears of sunlight
pierced thickening clouds,
then surrendered to the night.
© 2025 Richard Havenga
Photo Locations: Grand Teton National Park, Wyoming
Cloud shadows
sweep the foothills,
race up the mountains;
where they're lifted
back into the sky
to reunite with
the hurried clouds.
© 2024 Richard Havenga
Photo Locations:
1. Coronado National Memorial - Sierra Vista, Arizona
2. Oro Valley, Arizona
He sat on a log
on the gravelly bank
of the mountain stream,
in quiet contemplation.
Listening to the talking waters.
Studying the current
roll over rocks,
bend around boulders.
Until it flowed
into writing
that pleased
his soul.
© 2024 Richard Havenga
Photo Locations:
1. Taylor River - Almont, Colorado
2. Arkansas River - Buena Vista, Colorado
Silver veins of water
weave and wrap
around dark rock,
obey gravity,
carry the mountain's
meltwater, fall
to a tributary,
to a river,
to its ocean
goal.
© 2024 Richard Havenga
Photo Location:
I'm yearning, again,
for a walk in the wild.
Another rigorous hike
on the shoulder
of a mountain.
A place to avoid voices,
escape the noise,
and vanish
into the silence.
© 2024 Richard Havenga
Photo Location:
1. West Elk Wilderness - Colorado
He loved to walk
along mountain streams;
upstream.
And stop often
to sit on a boulder
and listen to the water rush.
And to watch
the bold current splash
against pure light.
To look upstream
at the future
coming at him.
Or look downstream
at the past
beyond change.
Sometimes he would gather
flat, rounded rocks
to build a cairn.
His mind concentrated
on structural design,
balance and stability.
It all brought real comfort
and genuine contentment
to his mountain soul.
This is where he belonged.
© 2024 Richard Havenga
Photo Location:
Arkansas River - Buena Vista, Colorado
Like the pull of the earth
on a compass needle,
he was drawn in all directions
to explore diverse geographies.
Mountains, plains, deserts.
Rivers, lakes, streams.
Atlantic, Pacific, Great Lakes.
North, South, East, West.
Encouraged by desire.
Motivated to travel.
Restored by hope.
Inspired by the Spirit.
Every road trip,
all the hiking trails,
each photo excursion,
made him feel alive.
Born to be
a "ramblin' man".
Always leaving,
always gone.
© 2023 Richard Havenga
Photo Locations:
1. Home Deck
2. Florence, Arizona
3. Lake Michigan - Grand Haven, Michigan
4. Rocky Mountain National Park - Colorado
5. Atlantic Ocean - Sunset Beach - North Carolina
6. Sandhill Cranes - Bosque del Apache National Wildlife Refuge - New Mexico
High in these Colorado mountains,
we are closer to Heaven.
Low in southwest Florida,
we are closer to the ocean.
Among Utah's red rock formations,
we're surrounded by natural stone sculptures.
Out in Arizona's dry deserts,
we're intrigued by species of cactus.
Home, in Michigan's two peninsulas,
we are proud of our Great Lakes.
Together, among our aging selves,
we are blessed with opportunities to travel.
© 2023 Richard Havenga
Photo Locations:
1. West Elk Wilderness - Colorado
2. Arches National Park - Utah
3. Saguaro National Park - east - Arizona
4. Lake Michigan - Michigan
