On nights like tonight, when the wind is a low breeze and the temperature is just cool enough, I love to stare up at the sky, even if there are only a few stars. There is a spot, right outside my backdoor, where I love to stand, staring towards those entrancing celestial bodies. Letting my thoughts seep out until I feel empty and quiet.
It is in these times, that I find North. I need to find North so that I can transport. I know what your saying, “Pittman, why did you get all weird just now? What’s up with the transporting and North…are you on something?” No, but its the best word to describe what I imagine.
As a kid, I used to climb out my window on to this section of roof that was about four feet wide, and attached to the larger roof above the garage. My parents, especially dad, got so irritated that I did it, but eventually they left me alone. I would sit on that roof for hours. Our house sat on a large hill. In fact, I was once told it was the highest point in the county, (this is Indiana, so that is like saying your the valedictorian in a class with ten students and your GPA is 3.0). But it did stick out in the neighborhood and the view on the roof was unparalleled by any other. I went there whenever I could, in good times, in bad, in sickness and in health…yeah, I totally would have loved to marry someone on that roof. It was and when I go back home still is my refuge.
When I look at the stars at my home now, its not the same. I want to feel the rough shingles and the friction of my clothes keeping me from sliding away. I want to peer over roof tops and see the horizon. I can’t tell you how many amazing sunsets and sunrises I’ve seen from my perch. So, when I need to go to my roof. I orient myself to the North. and then in my mind I travel to my roof, making sure I perfectly fit the frames of what I see and what I would see together. And for the briefest of moments, I am there. I am watching the same stars and I am content. The thoughts and cares of the day empty out on to the asphalt tiles, holding me up and keeping me from sliding away.
Pitts Witts 
I love that idea of “finding North” — whether it is the reality of our compass or even some metaphorical meandering — the idea of seeking a center, or a point on the horizon, is so critical to not just living day to day, but having the vision for something beyond. You had us on the roof with you. Thank you.
Kevin
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Beautiful. I get it.
I don’t have a similar ‘thing’ – there is no North for me, no transport. But I get what you’re saying here which is a testament to your writing.
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I like how this post flows. You take us along with you from “huh” to “oh” to “hmm” by plopping little images and ponderings into our heads. And leaving us wondering at the end.
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Such a soulful post! I am on the roof, too. Trying to find the peace, with you! Thank you for that!
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Great lead paragraph, especially that first sentence!
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I loved your post. “I went there whenever I could, in good times, in bad, in sickness and in health…yeah, I totally would have loved to marry someone on that roof. It was and when I go back home still is my refuge.” To have a place like that, real or imagined, or remembered is special. Thank you for sharing!
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I love this special place. I wish I had one, too. I moved so much that I am not sure I ever found one. I will be thinking about this…
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