My Own Private Asylum

When most people hear the word "asylum,"  they likely associate it with a large building with white padded walls and electric shock therapy-- a home for the insane.  This time of year, you can't turn on the radio or open the newspaper without hearing/ seeing an advertisement for a "haunted asylum."  Asylum, unfortunately, has gotten a bad reputation as a keep for the mentally unstable.  This is true, yes-- but there are other definitions.  For example... ever heard of political asylum?  (Merriam-Webster's definition: protection from arrest and extradition given especially to political refugees by a nation or by an embassy or other agency enjoying diplomatic immunity)  You don't have to be crazy to seek asylum.  You just have to be looking for a place of refuge, where you can find security and protection.

As I've written before, there are plenty of beautiful running paths in the Kalamazoo area.  One of my favorite things is unintentionally stumbling across something amazing while I'm out on a run.  A couple weeks ago, I had left my apartment and was out for a run.  Many times, when I'm out for my standard 3-4 mile run during the week, I run the same route.  This day was different.  I had just finished my half-marathon and was prepared to venture off on an unplanned route-- I didn't care how far I ran, or how long it took me, or whether I got lost.  These runs are usually my favorites.  The weather outside was perfect-- it wasn't raining, nor was it really cloudy-- but there was a double rainbow.  Not only could you see both ends of the rainbow, but there were 2 rainbows (look closely at the photo on the right).  An obvious good sign :) 

I continued to run and soon found the entrance to what looked like a heavily-wooded park.  Just past the entrance was a sign that displayed the map of the trails through the park, as well as a brief history of the area.  Turns out, I was in Asylum Lake Preserve.  a 274-acre wetland preserve (the lake lies in the Portage Creek Watershed) that is owned by Western Michigan University and is meant for recreational use.  I took a quick look at the available trails and started my run.  I made my way through the quiet preserve, down gravel trails, grass trails, and paved walks.  It wasn't long before I reached Asylum Lake.  Very rarely, when I'm on a run, do I see something that makes me skid to a halt and just stare.  Yes, this qualified.  All I could do was stop and look around.  It was breathtaking.  As you'll see from the photos below, I stayed for a while.  And as the sun began to go down, the sunset and clouds played with the palette of the sky, which was reflected flawlessly on the glassy surface of the lake-- perfect harmony.  Silent and completely tranquil, the lake was quite clearly a place of asylum-- a place to go when you want some refuge from the noise and chaos of everyday life.  I think everyone needs an asylum-- somewhere they can go when the rest of the world gets too noisy for them.  The rest of Kalamazoo could've been falling apart that night, but I wouldn't have noticed.  I had found my own private asylum.