Our family recently came home from a much-anticipated vacation to Washington D.C. Our son’s teacher spent a lot of time with her class studying our nation’s monuments and memorials. Those lessons really fueled his desire to see them…we agreed it was a terrific idea!
As we prepared to leave, we knew storms were coming, but that’s nothing new this time of year…the heat and humidity here often bring strong thunderstorms. Packed and ready to go we headed out, knowing neighbors & friends were keeping an eye on our home and animals. As we drove, we found ourselves traveling under or just barely ahead of the storms.
After a few hours on the road, we began receiving text messages about the damage in our hometown. Many homes had trees down and power outages were widespread. With heat at or above 100 degrees, it was a difficult time for many families.
This home was one we came across on our travels. A tree had completely taken off the front of the home and it appeared as a dollhouse…we could see inside each room. The next day a tarp had been draped on the front to protect what was remaining inside.
Neighbors checked on our home after the storm, and we had only two large limbs down. One had fallen beside our home, the second one was at the edge of our backyard…we were fortunate, no damage was done. We were keeping in touch with friends, and while we considered returning home, we were almost to D.C., and so decided to continue traveling.
Once there, we found our nation’s capital had an estimated 3 million people without power. Within a few days, gas stations were out of gas, stores were without ice and running low on food. We were fortunate…our hotel was one of the the few with power, and so we were comfortable and able to enjoy our time there.
And while we had a terrific vacation, visiting sites that made us pause and think..
pondering the beauty of the earth…
and discovering out -of-the-way places that made us smile,
I remember when the sisters used to say,
`Well, but we could buy it at the store a lot cheaper than we could put it up.’
But that isn’t quite the answer, is it?
Because there will become a time when there isn’t a store.”
Mary is a Midwest farmgirl who enjoys the simple pleasures of living in the country. “For us, living where there is plenty of room for gardens, animals, and for kids to play and explore is the best kind of life.” You can visit Windy Meadows Farm at www.windymeadowsfarm.blogspot.com.
