Arthur,  Musician, former Lodge Crew Member and Winter Caretaker David Witherspoon passed away this week in his Pitman Center Home.  David lived a many faceted life and was a great influence on many lives.  Among his many accomplishments, David Witherspoon's writings appeared in many literary magazines.  His books included "The Song Of The Winter Wren",  "Callie" and "Easy Go".   He performed with bands as diverse as the Berea Castoffs, The Four Seasons, the Delphonics and the Los Angeles Philharmonic New Music Group.  David was an avid hiker and shared our love of the Great Smoky Mountains.
    I would like to quote a pass age from "Song Of the Winter Wren" that has had a lasting impact on me.
    "Curving up from the shelter toward the overlook over a surface strewn with green amputations by wind, I look over my shoulder: a planet of electric light.  And closer the high heave of dark mountain forest, birthplace of streams.  Snowlight, starlight, no moon this side of earth.  Feel my fear and walk, breathing.
    Hear an airplane and freeze.  Walk and hear a tree pop, far away in nowhere, deep in wilderness.  Ignore hallucinated voices.  Breathe and walk on soft-frozen innocence, through tree-shadow and starlight: gunch, gunch, gunch, gunch.
    Full moon rises as I go to bed.  When I close my eyes, I am still out there, walking the gentle earth."

    Thank You David. 

    Donations in David Witherspoon's memory can be made to the Eastern Native Tree Society at www.nativetreesociety.org .
    A memorial gathering will be held April 10th at the Greenbriar Cove Picnic Pavilion in the National Park.