My Place - a Connection Between Man-Made and the Natural

Brian J. Idle

English 101

4/08/11

Essay: My Place- A Connection between the Man-made and Natural

Draft 2

Simplistic Michigan Beauty

Traverse City is a small community located in the northwestern tip of the great state of Michigan in Grand Traverse County. It is well known for being the cherry capital of the world, and growing fruitfully among the landscape, there is row after row of cherry trees as far as the eye can see. Most of the trees are grown on the peninsula, which protrudes north of the city center and is surrounded by some the clearest blue water on earth, known as the east and west arms of the Grand Traverse Bay. I had the opportunity of living alone on this isolated peninsula in the year of 2002 for a short period of time while working in the city. It was great to return to the north of Michigan and live in a community clean and pure, unlike anything you will find in suburban cities.

I had moved to Traverse City in the late summer and was immediately taken in by is breathtaking scenery that surrounds the city. People were still sun bathing when I got there, and everyone was hanging out in the Indian summer sun near the south western corner of the bay at Bryant Park, having fun while working on their tans and enjoying boating activities. I got to drive by this area every day while coming to and from work, and as the season changed from summer to fall, I could see less and less activity going on by the bay. It made me wish that my family would have joined me in my quest for re-location. I recall one afternoon, while sitting on the bay and gazing into the crystal clear water, I would think of how inner city children may never see water as clean and clear as this. In fact I had not even seen water as clear until my father had brought me there as a young child to go camping one summer. The clarity of the water surrounding the peninsula brought forth an abundance of crops on the peninsula with little help of any man made irrigation, and this natural growth brought me to the realization that a clean environment produced a healthy lifestyle, and the community reflected that concept through its cleanliness and upkeep of its city center.

Fall became the most colorful time of the year on the peninsula. The abundance of maple trees gave shades of golden yellow and vibrant oranges all the way through every shade of red to deep brown. It was a joy to see all the pumpkin patches that sprung up from the ground like orange sprinkles on a Halloween cupcake as I drove home from work. I remember phoning home and telling my wife that I had just seen the largest pumpkin on earth! There were signs for directions to a corn maze, and as I drove by I could see the children lining up and having such a wonderful time. People