'PLACE IN TIME'

Back in the early 90’s I helped supervise an 8th grade field trip to Mount Washington Cemetery in Independence, Missouri. We were recording dates, epitaphs, family names, etc. for a social studies project. Tucked away near the front entrance was a memorial and head stone for James Bridger. I recognized the name; the 19th Century mountain man but knew little more. Curiosity moved me to read his biography, a great read, full of facts, details, a large part of western history. His story spans a period roughly from the Louisiana Purchase to several years after Custer’s defeat at the Little Bighorn. Born in Virginia, as a youth he had been indentured by his father to a blacksmith in St. Louis. The 17 year-old saw no future in St. Louis and stole away with a hundred other volunteers on General Wm. Ashley’s Upper Missouri Expedition. It was 1822; other fur companies were working the Missouri and its head waters and Ashley wanted part of the action. His, Rocky Mountain Fur Company, often referred to as ‘Ashley’s 100’  was a grand adventure. Besides Jim Bridger, other volunteers on that expedition who achieved fame as mountain men were Hugh Glass and Jedediah Smith. Bridger was able to prevail for over 40 years in the Rocky Mountain wilds as America moved west. Trapper, explorer, guide, scout, trader, businessman, his accomplishments are legend. There were many like him, who turned their backs on civilization in favor of a solitary life, physical hardship and constant danger. But it was Bridger who literally watched it all unfold and returned to tell his story. 

Joseph Campbell died in the 1980’s but still gets the nod when it comes to myth and mythology. His book, ‘Hero With A Thousand Faces’ details the hero’s journey, the making of a hero. In ancient pre-history the hero was usually a warrior who goes out to fight the dragon or the enemy. That ‘Going Out’ may take many years to complete. In the process the warrior experiences perilous encounters and returns a changed man. In the end, the hero is revered more so for his wisdom, leadership and life changing influence on his people than for the winning. Campbell’s model is just that, a model, not the rule. Heroes have no gender requirement and the journey may be internal, intellectual, emotional or psychological rather than physical. It’s all about the ‘Going Out’, the ‘Journey’ and the ‘Coming Back’ a different person, experienced and revered. If this is the measure of a Hero, then I submit that Jim Bridger is a hero of the highest order. 

On a road trip in 2007 I stopped in the little town of Fort Bridger, Wyoming. When JB returned to Missouri in the mid 1860’s, Ft. Bridger was refitted as a military post. A small town sprang up around it that still exists. The army fort is the basis for a state park. Besides the old army buildings, a short walk to the edge of Little Black’s Fork, a replica of the old trading post has been rebuilt on the same spot where Jim Bridger traded with the indians, where pilgrims stopped for supplies, repairs and advice. I spent several hours there. Nothing remained of the original structure except enough evidence of old footings to be sure the new version occupied the same space. But the cross-log construction, mud chinking and sod roof are convincing. One building houses the trading post and the blacksmith forge; the other was Bridger’s living quarters and storage space. 

There is something about ‘Place’ in ‘Time’ that allows us to touch the past. Wherever I may be, in that moment, everything that happens there belongs to my experience. It is my Place in Time. But time is made up of fluid moments that pass so quickly the only way you remember one is by what happened in that split second. Place on the other hand is concrete, fixed so you can return to it later and recall what happened there, imagine what certainly took place in someone else's time. First Nation’s people who still honor the ‘Old Way’, have their own sacred places, some from the history of their ancestors and some from their own personal journey. Even though you can’t restore the moment, a sacred ‘Place’ can rekindle old flames. It works for me all the time. Just a few weeks ago I sat in the sand at Red Wall Cavern in Grand Canyon. John Wesley Powell, 145 years earlier, the one-armed Civil War veteran explored Grand Canyon in a wooden oar boat, not knowing what lay ahead. He did it right there under the same canyon walls, the same stretch of water, stopping at the same beach where I sat. It is a special place both in Powell’s experience and in mine. Across time we felt the same sense of awe for Red Wall Cavern and I loved it. Two weeks ago I stopped again at Fort Bridger. I stood at the bellows of the forge and imagined him repairing broken wagon wheels. I passed through the gate where a Mormon party passed, sent there by Brigham Young to murder Bridger. But he had been warned and was not to be found. 

I would not want to live his life, exciting as it was; who would want to wade icy streams, fight off wild animals and go without a tooth brush for a lifetime? But I do try to identify with his adapting to conditions as they change. He was a renowned storyteller and I connect with that. We, JB and I, have shared the ‘Place’ connection three times and each time I’ve come away a little richer. If I need a Hero, I don’t need to look any farther.