I took a trip (by car) recently that had me traveling
through the countryside of my home state of North Carolina until somewhere
within Virginia before I reached the Interstate I needed to go further north to
my destination. I highly recommend this
type of trip now and then because it really gives you a feel for the sameness
and the uniqueness of all the different areas of our country. Leave the Interstate Highways when you can,
even if it delays you somewhat. You won’t
regret it! To travel by plane often gets
you there faster, but from a plane, everything looks like a multicolored carpet
occasionally obscured by clouds. From a
car, you see the color of the houses and barns, the density of trees and the
dancing of flowers on the roadside. When
you drive through the countryside (or the Appalachian Mountains) you can roll
down your windows and SMELL the freshness of the air.
I had forgotten about Kudzu before driving down those roads. For those unfamiliar, this is a viney plant
that covers everything on the sides of the roads, and I do mean everything…
bushes, trees, even telephone poles and abandoned buildings… all covered like a
thick blanket of deep green snow. It
makes the roadside look soft somehow.
Sometimes, on winding country roads, with their “switch-back” curves and
rolling hills, it can sometimes feel other-worldly… like you’ve somehow entered
another dimension where everything is soft and quiet. Then you’ll go around another curve, and
there’s a pasture speckled with black and white cows and a deep red barn off in
the distance… and you’re quietly pulled back into the present. Those slow country roads can be a vacation
unto themselves sometimes.
There are treasures to be found on this type of trip. Google’s GPS voice quietly chirped at me to
go down to the end of the road (a few miles) and then take a left… no stop
lights, just a stop sign on another quiet two-lane country road that was now
starting to wind its way through the rolling hills toward the Shenandoah Valley
of Virginia. The roadsides were covered
with fluffy green trees, thick with their summer growth of limbs and leaves,
surrounded by the undergrowth of bushes, sapling trees, and wildflowers. As we all do, I stopped at the sign and began
looking right and left to make a safe turn onto the next road. I looked right… one car coming, so I
wait. I look left, and about 20 feet
down the road in that direction was a delight… a large-ish country store
looking building, nestled back into the mountainside, as if it had grown there
of its own volition. On the covered
porch that clung to the entire front of the store were flags (like you hang in
your yard or from your house) and all sorts of antiques. Handmade signs adorned every post that held
the porch roof up, homemade birdhouses clung to the rafters of the porch, and so
much other stuff that it was impossible to take it all in just by driving
by. I instantly knew I’d found a
treasure that had to be explored in some depth.
Pulling over and parking on the narrow graveled area, deep
with ruts in places from rain washing down the edge of the road for years, I
took my time getting out of the car simply because I was so busy looking at
everything on the outside of this marvelous place. As I approached the door, I notice a sign
that has an old outhouse on it, with an arrow pointing off to the right, and
wondered if, indeed, this meant an outhouse (which would have been believable
in a place like this) or if it was just a cute way to show the way to the
restroom. I wandered to the door, taking
the time to look at this and that on the porch, and found an old screen door
that delightfully squeaked as I opened it, as if it were welcoming me as it had
done for visitors for years gone by.
Inside, I was instantly delighted with the scents of homemade soaps and
candles… and amazed at the collections of various items crafted by local
artisians (potters, woodcrafters, weavers, etc.). I chose a few items as I was going along, to
take back as gifts and/or souvenirs, grateful to be supporting local artisans
rather than corporate souvenir shops found in other places. Behind the old wooden counter stood a man who
greeted me with a smile, and welcomed me as if I had stepped into his
home. As he boxed up my purchases (so
very carefully, so that everything would “travel well”), he explained where
everything came from… the two mugs from a potter that lived nearby… the small
jug from a potter in North Carolina where lots of potters lived (“… had I ever
heard of JugTown,” he asked. And I
laughed and nodded, knowing it was only two hours from where I lived.)…the
coasters from someone he goes to church with.
Each item had a story and he told it as he gently wrapped each item in
old newspapers, stuffing scraps of bubble wrap in the gaps in the box. I paid for my purchases, bought a bottle of
water, and made my way back to the car… grateful for how refreshed and rested I
felt from such an unexpected adventure. On
my way back from my destination, several days later, I noticed the “store” was
closed (it was Sunday, after all), so this made me extra glad that I had taken
an unhurried approach to my trip, and had stopped. Unexpected treasures… found!!!
This reminded me of another time, when my youngest son and I
were driving across the US (Florida to Washington State). Our habit was to pull off at any “Overlooks”
we ran across because “you just never know what you’re going to see, and
besides, Mom needs to stretch her legs”.
We pulled off at one, and found ourselves looking at the Badlands of
South Dakota. This was our first time seeing
mesas… like misshaped stalagmites made from stripes of colored earth… as far as
the eyes could see… and it looked like another world to us. This is truly one of the most unique sights
in America, and one I highly recommend seeing at some point. Not only the beauty of the mesas greeted us,
though… there were bison roaming the property. BISON!
Not in fences!! We had driven
over some huge grates at the entry to the Overlook which kept them within the
confines of the area. ……….And we stood
there, amazed, imagining so many of these huge shambling animals that the whole
plains looked black… and realized just how very fortunate we were to get to see
these creatures up close.
Treasures can be found in the most unexpected places, and
can lead you on some of the most rewarding adventures. I highly encourage you to take one of these
kinds of trips from time to time. It
renews your outlook on Life itself in ways both unexpected and delightful!
