We have a tendency these days to travel quickly from one place to another. Planes are often our preferred mode of transportation. There are obvious benefits to leaving Houston in the morning and enjoying dinner in San Francisco. Making our way across long distances by car takes so much longer and requires a certain amount of patience. Still there is something far more intimate about a road trip. It allows us to begin to truly understand the geography and the people of our country. We get a better sense of the grandness of this nation and the hard working spirit that keeps it moving from day to day. Continue reading “The Journey”
When the newly formed Confederate States fired on Fort Sumter to begin the conflict known as the Civil War citizens gathered on the verandas and balconies of the homes along the Battery in Charleston to celebrate what they believed would be a very short engagement. Almost a year later the battles lingered on and it would be three more years before the bitter feud between what had once been united states finally ended. The cost would weigh heavily on both sides, especially in terms of the lost treasure of young men. 
New Orleans is a siren, a temptress who lulls unsuspecting innocents into her arms. She infects her unwitting visitors with a fever from which there is no cure. Forevermore they love her and must return again and again and again. I am one of those people who is so enamored with the Big Easy that I often find myself dreaming of walking the familiar haunts. When I have been gone too long I feel a longing and ultimately I find my way back to her. I revel in the sights, the sounds, the feast of the senses until I am satiated enough to return to my normal routines but the lovely NOLA is never far from my thoughts. She knows as I do that I will never resist her call. I will come back to enjoy her many charms. 
The northeast corner of Indiana is home to a large number of Amish families. In towns like Nappanee and Shipshawana these quiet and humble people live in simple ways that are reminiscent of times past. Yesterday Mike and I decided to follow the Heritage Trail that loops through the land where they work and worship. It was a memorable experience.
All It Takes Is A Little Love 