Montreat

Yesterday we visited friends in Montreat, a historic little town on the other side of Asheville. Nestled in a beautiful mountain cove just outside Black Mountain, Montreat came into being in 1897 as a Christian assembly ground. Lots were sold, a hotel was built, and assemblies -- camp meetings -- were held. At first the participants made do with tents but soon houses were built, houses, for the most part, not intended for year round use. Even today, most are not lived in full time and the population swells in summertime with vacationing families, youth groups, and assorted conference-goers.

Montreat's a singularly pleasant place with many of the original houses and buildings still in use. Sleepy Hollow(not pictured), where our friends were staying , dates back to 1905 -- or earlier -- and is like a palimpsest with tokens from previous generations still in evidence, including a collection of books by Pearl S. Buck who was said to have stayed there while writing her Pulitzer Prize - winning novel The Good Earth.

The North Carolina mountains are home to a number of communities or conference centers or retreats run by various organizations and religious groups (Montreat is Presbyterian). Here at Montreat, the combination of mountains, sky and water, with a harmonious collection of historic cottages tucked back amongst the rhododendrons, is utterly charming and surely conducive to spiritual growth and serenity.

I almost forgot to fret.