Dat's de Mississippi River

 Here begins the Mississippi River's  2552 mile journey to the Gulf of Mexico.
 

There are few tourists on this cloudy Monday afternoon: some family groups, including an older couple with children and grandchildren. The man looked like one of those Swedes or Norwegians who seemed to populate Minnesota when I first moved here 30 years ago: a stereotype, the kind of guy who wears overalls except for church on Sunday and sounds like an Ole and Lena joke.

He was  quiet until we the headquarters came into view, and then he stopped in his tracks and gestured toward the water. "Dat's de Mississippi River", he said reverently to no one in particular.

The view was awesome.

Caretaker Woman by Jeff Savage. Itasca State Park.

Women are the caretakers of the water in the Anishinabe tradition. Sculptor Jeff Savage's beautiful Caretaker Woman watches over the path that leads to the headwaters of the Mississippi River. The artist writes that she is a reflection in the headwaters, and her flowing hair represents the flowing currents of the water.

The river is about 800 feet from this point. The walk reminds me of the approach to Sacré-Coeur at the top of Montmartre in Paris, where anticipation increases just before the church comes into view. It feels like a holy place, and we stop for awhile at the little bridge over the creek where the great river begins it 2522 mile journey to the Gulf of Mexico.