Watchtower Gives Mother A New Outlook
High in the mountains among the ferns, deer and icy creeks, Kevin Osver got dirt under her fingernails - and lived through it.
She hung by one arm from a fire watchtower catwalk in the forest, blasted her Toyota over rutted roads and stood naked in the wind for the first time in her life. A sheltered mother and worker, Kevin surrendered herself to nature like a “Lord of the Flies” English schoolboy.
“It was very cleansing, like being reborn,” she says, with a blissful smile. “It was like being in the presence of God every moment.”
Kevin, who’s 41, found nirvana this summer atop Castle Butte in southern Idaho’s Bitterroot Mountains. She and a friend rented a fire watchtower for three days in July to escape the frenzy of the work world.
“I have a tendency to be driven by my responsibilities,” says Kevin, an impeccably groomed legal assistant in Coeur d’Alene. “In the woods, there is no male or female, no makeup. You become you, instead of mother or worker. I love that.”
The tower sat on a mountain of rocks and overlooked an endless plush carpet of pines and firs. Purple wildflowers trimmed its base like lace on an anklet.
Cots lined one wall of the tower, a propane stove and table another. Kevin and her friend packed in food, water, music. They hiked, talked, watched chipmunks and played - a lot.
Between Scrabble games and hide-and-seek in the trees, Kevin found time to assess her life and the peace to plan her future.
“I had lived a very genteel, quiet, Christian life,” she says, no trace of shrinking violet left on her tanned, workout-hardened body. “I had never thought about the woman below the surface.”
At Castle Butte, Kevin found a child inside who liked to hunt and fish, ride motorcycles, drive four-wheel trucks, camp and kayak.
When she returned home to Post Falls, her four boys discovered a new mother ready to clean a fish or bathe in a forest stream.
“I didn’t even know all this existed,” Kevin says with disbelief. “I’ve learned how to play in a big way and I’ll never be the same.”
Fore!
Kootenai County deputies got so much practice swinging picket signs recently that they’re ready for the golf course. But this time the money they raise from their swings will go to fulfill the last wishes of dying children.
The deputies will hit the links at the Highlands Tuesday and still need sponsors and prizes. Chip in what you can. Call Dee Emerson or Jerry Wiedenhoff at 664-1511.
Open for business
It’s been a long haul, but Coeur d’Alene’s Cultural Center is open for business. Now, the beautiful brick building in City Park needs money for fall arts and science classes. The Three Cs (cancer and community charities) has taken on the challenge.
It’s organized a classy affair with artists and artisans exhibiting in and around the center. Drinks and elegant hors d’oeuvres - that means cucumber sandwiches, not peanut butter on crackers - will be served inside two historic railcars parked next to the center.
The $35 ticket price is good for food, drink, music, art and a one-year membership in the Cultural Center. Call 772-6001 for details.
Who’s tougher?
Coeur d’Alene’s Al Harrison, Donna Messenger and Bill Travis and Moscow’s Gwen Lyons traveled to Penticton, British Columbia, last month to swim two miles in an icy cold lake, bike 112 miles and run a marathon - all in one day.
They finished Canada’s Ironman Triathlon and lived to tell the tale. I’m in awe.
Who’s the toughest person you know, physically or otherwise? Spell out their accomplishments to Cynthia Taggart, “Close to Home,” 608 Northwest Blvd., Suite 200, Coeur d’Alene, Idaho, 83814; fax to 765-7149; or call 765-7128.
, DataTimes ILLUSTRATION: Color Photo