Shelby and I returned from a lovely eight-day excursion in which we motored, mostly along remote backroads, to Virginia where we had the privilege to see our oldest son John graduated from Thomas Nelson University and to spend some quality time with John, his wife Adrianne, and their five great kids. Public school was still in session, so most days we had the special treat of being just with the pre-school grandchildren and at night with the lot.
Motoring backroads allowed us to see some fascinating new places, encountering parks and exhibits, mills, springs and wineries, and all sorts of interesting people and cultures. Southern Virginia seemed to have a lot of properties flying the Confederate flag and a lot of automobiles with the Tea Party state licence plate. Nowhere else did we find those eccentricities. In eastern Tennessee, we encountered folks with a most unusual accent and the curious female habit of addressing customers as "Darlin'." I was mister Darlin in filling stations, convenience stores, restaurants -- everywhere.
Probably the kindest and most courteous and respectful people we encountered were in southern Missouri. The region boasted the lowest fuel prices. It was also the only area in which liberal politics were in evidence. In fact, at a small service station way out in the country I was thanked by the clerk for the Bernie Sanders sticker on my car. She had voted for Bernie in their primary and was the only person on our entire journey to comment about it. In fact, there were virtually no signs or activities anywhere on our route to suggest that we are in an election year.
There are many wonderful treasures to be discovered and adventures to be had in out-of-the-way places in our country. Sometimes it pays to slow down and take the road less travelled.
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