National Park Radio - May 17, 2023

 My An Arkie's Faith column from the May 17, 2023, issue of The Polk County Pulse.

As we drove up Hwy 7 towards Jasper, lush green fields changed to forest as the road became crooked and steep. Occasionally we could glimpse a view of the valleys below as the road climbed to the top of a ridge. I love the "mountains of Arkansas," even if they aren't tall and majestic like the Rocky Mountains. 

Vance Randolph, who spent his life collecting, recording, and writing about Ozark life and folklore, once said about this area, "It's not that the mountains are so high but that the valleys are so deep." As we stopped to take in the views of the Arkansas Grand Canyon just a few miles from Jasper, I had to agree with Randolph. It may not be as deep as the one out West, but the canyon here in Arkansas has some truly breathtaking views.

We were on our way to Harrison to attend National Park Radio's album release concert for their new album, Canyons. As I looked out over the canyon from the Cliff House Inn, I thought about the beauty of Arkansas and how I sometimes compared it unfavorably to the Rocky Mountains I had grown up with in Colorado. National Park Radio's singer/songwriter Stefan Szabo wrote about those feelings in his song "Wander." Each year, the band tours out West during the summer because they love the majestic scenery there. But after coming back home to Arkansas after a tour, Stefan wrote these words that I can relate to.

"Through the wild, we wander. You can find us there—sounds of distant thunder in the mountain air. Now behold the beauty high above the trees. Golden light reflecting from the snow-capped peaks. Oh, I don't know where I belong, but here I am." The final verse of the song tells the story of returning home. "Headed south from Jackson back to Arkansas. Now those Ozark mountains didn't seem so tall. But I can see the beauty of this place called home. Full of love and family and the Buffalo. Now I know where I belong. And here I am."

Like Stefan, I love traveling and seeing America's wonderfully varied landscapes. Still, when I come home to Arkansas, I realize that I live in one of the most beautiful places in the U.S. Our trip to Harrison and the Buffalo River area reinforced my belief that the Ouachitas and the Ozarks are as beautiful as anything the rest of the country has to offer.

I first heard National Park Radio when they headlined the Lum and Abner Days Festival in 2018. We planned to attend the band's concert at Steel Creek Campground on the Buffalo River the following year. We arrived at the campground early in the afternoon. So early that we were the first to set out our chairs in front of the stage. We spent the afternoon swimming in the Buffalo River and picnicking while taking in the incredible scenic beauty of the area. When the first strains of music filled the air, the audience cheered as they settled down to watch the band play with the beautiful bluffs above the Buffalo River in the background.

It had been four years since the concert at Steel Creek, and I was excited to hear National Park Radio again. The band has changed with the changes that Covid brought to the live music industry. They no longer tour with a full band but as a husband-and-wife duo. When Kerrie and Stefan took the stage and began playing, It was as if they were old friends playing a few songs for you in your living room. 

The concert was terrific, and Kerrie and Stefan told stories about the music and their lives. I loved every song, but as the show ended, they had not played one of my favorites, "Mighty Mountains." The song has been meaningful to me since I first heard them play, and I was just a bit disappointed. When they returned for the encore, Stefan began a driving beat on his suitcase kick drum, then Kerrie started singing, "I'm gonna fight 'em all. A seven-nation army couldn't hold me back." Everyone in the audience seemed surprised to hear a White Stripes cover, as National Park Radio rarely sings covers.    

As the last strains of Seven Nation Army faded and I assumed the concert was over, Stefan immediately transitioned into another song. "When I was only seventeen, I found myself caught in between what you could say was life and fantasy." A smile spread across my face as I listened to Mighty Mountains. The song's message has resonated with me from the first time I heard it at Lum and Abner Days.

The song reminded me of times when I have been too easily discouraged. In the song, Stefan writes, "That crooked road seemed all too steep. It stretched beyond what I could see." But the song is not about giving in to life's problems. It is about a positive outlook and the determination not to let life pass you by. The music continues, "But at last I saw the future; Every moment that could be. Oh, I found that life was waiting there for me. Only for a moment, I'd forgotten why we came. Not unlike my father, mighty mountains call my name. Oh, the explanations and excuses we could find. But unlike my father, those mighty mountains I will climb."

We are all faced with mountains. Sometimes there are mountains of discouragement. Sometimes there are mountains of hopes, dreams, and aspirations. We often have "explanations and excuses" for why we can't climb those mountains. But God says that you can. In Psalm 18:33 (NLT), David says, "He makes me as surefooted as a deer, enabling me to stand on mountain heights." 

The last verse of the song is powerful. "It's strength we find when we are weak. It's faith that moves the tallest peak. And love that lasts for long after we're gone. But few can truly know the cost. And all who wander are not lost. For love will lead the tired and troubled home. 'Cause, at last, I see the future. Every moment that can be. And I've found that life is waiting here for me."

Gentle Reader, Don't miss out on God's blessings for you because you are too timid to attempt to climb mighty mountains. If you never climb the mountain, you will never be able to see the mountaintop view. God says, "Do not be afraid. I am with you. Do not be terrified. I am your God. I will make you strong and help you." Isaiah 41:10 (NIRV) He wants to climb mighty mountains with you.