Golden Dreams

During our recent visit to Ketchikan, Alaska, I bought this gold nugget that had come from Poker Creek near the settlement of Boundary, Alaska, not far from the Yukon Territory. In the early 1900’s the creek provided down-on-their-luck prospectors a place to pan enough gold to get back into the local poker games.

The photo background is the gold pan that as a kid, I actually used to pan for gold in the mountains of Colorado with the kind assistance of a family friend, Roy Kaiser. I did manage to find a little gold during those outings, probably less than a quarter of the amount in the small nugget pictured. It mattered little; the joy of the venture came from the dream of discovery that went with it, and kept my mind happily occupied with golden memories upon return to my home on the Nebraska plains.

Through life there have been other dreams of adventures that have captivated the imagination and commanded the attention for a time. Some panned out while others didn’t, and a few even led to disappointment. But regardless of the outcome, the greatest reward was that I was much the better for having dared to dream.

#gold #goldpan #goldrush #pokercreek #prospector