In keeping with our Evergreen Birthday cover theme, I’m going down memory lane, thinking about this beautiful town, which drew me to it over three decades ago. While I haven’t been in Evergreen nearly as long as Doug has, I’ve been here for 26 years, and I vacationed here every year for 10 years before that. I have seen the many, many changes that have happened in the last three decades, but that is nothing compared to all the lucky people who were born and raised here, not to mention those whose families homesteaded here.
One of my best friends at the time moved here from Florida and I would come out to see her every summer. She was a gracious host, driving me all over Colorado and showing me the typical tourist spots. She lived up behind the Little Bear, so we spent a lot of time in downtown Evergreen and I was absolutely enchanted with every aspect of the little town (and the Little Bear!). This was back when The River Sage restaurant was where Cactus Jack’s is now. We would eat brunch there (oh, my, the Eggs Benedicts!), and then head off on adventures. Every single summer I told myself, “I will live here one day.”
Over the years here, I have heard this kind of story—my story—over and over. It’s a variation on a theme. People visit here, sometimes once, maybe more often, and Evergreen’s charm creeps into their soul. It haunts them until they return. For good. It doesn’t happen to everyone, and it doesn’t always stick (validated by the average two-year turnover rate here!), but for those who are meant to be here, you know it in your soul and it is magical.
No one was more upset by my move from the East Coast than my parents, who just couldn’t fathom my living in such a wild wilderness, much less so far away from home. I think they envisioned me living in a tent in the actual woods on the side of a mountain—the threat of being eaten by wolves looming! When they would question why I felt the need to be out here, the only answer that always bubbled to the surface was, “because this is where God lives.” All the other reasons never seemed to help them understand, anyway.
So, I celebrate you, Evergreen, and I celebrate all those who came before me who helped to make this town the beautiful burg it is today. And on that same note, I also hope that we as well as our descendants can enjoy another 150 years and more without losing the integrity of our town. Knowing that we are in such a high-risk fire area has us all uneasy as we watch California burning. The losses are unimaginable and it would bring us all to our knees should a fire like that rage through here.
I know many of you have friends and family who have been affected by the California fires, and we grieve with you. Our hearts go out to all those suffering in California, and we pray these fires can be extinguished posthaste.