I'm thankful

Marge and I seem to never get away and take some time off and vacation if you will. During the summer, we have our garden, which takes virtually all our time. But at the same time, our critters require daily care. We don't have many steers, but they seem to need attention every few days, whether it be water or salt or whatever. We also have a passel of cats both in the house and outside. Two of the three inside cats were intended to be foster cats, but instead have ended up being permanent residents. The other inside cat was a sickly baby we felt sorry for, and she ended up being inside. Then there is our dog, Dutchess.

But during the last two weeks of October, we headed north on a two-week vacation. We drove north to Hannibal, Missouri, and then west to St. Joseph, Missouri, before heading north to Omaha. From Omaha we headed into Nebraska stopping at Bassett, Valentine, Cody and on to Chadron. We spent one day up in the Black Hills before snow and freezing temps sent us back into Nebraska. We spent some time in Lakeside and then on to Arthur. All in all, we had a good time. We ate some awesome meals at some really small diners in small-town Nebraska. We visited with some cousins, sisters and brother, high school classmates, nephews and nieces, and a bunch of good friends. All in all, it was a relaxing, not-in-a-hurry getaway time for us. I'm thankful.

As we drove across Missouri and then Nebraska I was struck by all the flags that were displaying the stars and stripes. Some I'm sure didn't have lights on them at night so maybe not 100% correct, but I was impressed. One particular flag that stood out was out in the middle of nowhere in Nebraska on the top of the highest hill around. It made one want to stop and say thanks. And when I say middle of nowhere that's what I mean. As we left Arthur to drive back to Scott City, we drove to Tryon which was about 40 miles. We met five cars. We have always intended on getting a flagpole up out where we live and just never got around to it. I came back to Missouri from vacation with the resolve to get the pole up and start flying the stars and stripes. I'm thankful.

As we drove into Cody, Nebraska, there was a grocery store on the north side of the road with "Circle C Market" on the sign. I'd read about how Cody had lost its grocery store, and it didn't have any convenience store, so it was miles and miles to even get a gallon of milk or a loaf of bread. So some of the students who went to school in Cody proposed opening a grocery store in Cody. Plans were made to build a 3,000-square-foot building using straw bales as the primary building material. Students run the market with each taking turns stocking the shelves, cleaning, pricing and running the cash register. The groceries are a little more expensive, which I expected, but there is the feeling I'm supporting a small town U.S.A. business. One item I checked out was whether they had Dorothy Lynch Salad Dressing, and they did. Dorothy Lynch is a Nebraska product and hard to find except in Nebraska. I'm thankful. I'm thankful for those who care enough to spend time helping others.

One of our plans was to drive north of Chadron up into the Black Hills of South Dakota. While there we wanted to see the Faces and Crazy Horse and drive through Custer State Park. The weather forecast wasn't the greatest with snow beginning and temps were supposed to fall. But we took a chance and headed north. We drove up through Custer State Park on our way to the Faces and Crazy Horse, and the buffalo made sure we saw them. Many of the buffalo were less than 20 feet from us as we stopped and took pictures. It was as if they were posing for us. A couple of the big bull buffalo weren't 10 feet from us. It was totally awesome. Buffalo have always seemed to be an icon for America. I'm thankful.

As we left Custer State Park and headed on north, we ran into 5 or 6 inches of snow and temp was down to 32 degrees, so we headed south to Chadron. We stayed overnight in Chadron and woke up to an inch or so of snow and it was cold. Roads were clear by midmorning so all was good. Crazy Horse and the Faces will have to wait for another day.

We drove north of Alliance, Nebraska, up to Car Hinge. The wind was blowing probably 20 miles an hour and the temp was down in the 20s, so we didn't spend a lot of time. We walked around the different cars that were on display. Some were partly buried while others were placed on top of other cars. Pretty neat display. It's kind of a takeoff from Stonehenge.

We spent some time at each of our stops in the local cemeteries visiting some family and friends who have passed on. Stopped in Bassett and visited Marge's sister's grave site. Stopped in Chadron and visited the grave of an old friend of mine. Spent some time in the cemeteries at Alliance and Mullen and Arthur visiting family and friends. Brothers-in-law and aunts and uncles and grandparents and cousins and nephews and parents and on and on. Sad that they had passed on, but so thankful I'd met most of them and gotten to know them. Some were special. Many of them had impacted Marge's life and mine.

Many of those we visited with, like our family and friends, are up in years just like Marge and I are. Marge just added a year this month, and I'll hit the 70 mark the beginning of next year. We aren't guaranteed a life span of 80 or 90 years. Tomorrow isn't guaranteed. One thing we wanted to do was visit while we were both above ground. To sit and have a cup of coffee together or to enjoy a meal like The Patriot Burger in Oshkosh. Many times we fail to visit until it's too late and time has run out.

As we go through this Thanksgiving season and then Christmas take the time to visit or call. Reach out and touch if only by phone. Gifts are OK, but many would prefer some one-on-one time with those they love. If there are some you are at odds with, then "kiss and make up." Maybe you wouldn't actually kiss, but at least make up with them.