Time Travel
Tuesday evening we went out to see my Great Aunt Pauline and Uncle Harold. Aunt Pauline is my Grandma's oldest sister. She's 91. Uncle Harold is 92. They're pretty spunky. Up until a decade or so ago, they'd still travel around the US and square dance. Aunt Pauline makes great cherry pie (from the tree in their back yard). Uncle Harold has the most organized garage/work shop I've ever seen.
They live out Highway 179 in Jamestown, a booming metropolis of maybe 250 people, most of whom I'm probably distantly related to. Jamestown is about a 25 minute drive from Jeff City. I used to think it was at the ends of the earth. When I was 9, it took ages and ages to get there! Hwy 179 is a two-lane windy, hilly road through pastures, woods and farmlands next to the Missouri River.
Within five miles of Jamestown, on 179 we pass most of my family's history. The lands that five generations of the Gentzsch's have farmed. The log cabin where my grandfather was born. The first Gentzsch Family homestead. My Great Grandma Velma's house. The house where my dad was born. The house my parents first lived in (when I was less than one), which didn't have plumbing. The house that I grew up in - where I fished off the front porch during floods. The creek where I found fossils and discovered that I wanted to be an paleontologist. And the houses of all of my immediate relatives.
It was about 10 when we left to go home, nearly past my bedtime! I sat in the backseat and pressed my face to the glass. The stars were amazing. When I was little I would always watch the stars on our way home. (That's how I got to see Haley's Comet!) I felt like I was 9 again.
Then I noticed the fire flies and fell in love. In all the pastures and trees along the road for the entire drive to JC, fire flies sprinkled the night like tinkerbells or blinky christmas lights. Definitely magic! Sometimes it reminded me of BRC from the perimeter. I'll try and take pictures later this summer, but a photo won't be able to communicate the feel and smell of the warm, fresh night air, which is critical to the fire fly experience.
They live out Highway 179 in Jamestown, a booming metropolis of maybe 250 people, most of whom I'm probably distantly related to. Jamestown is about a 25 minute drive from Jeff City. I used to think it was at the ends of the earth. When I was 9, it took ages and ages to get there! Hwy 179 is a two-lane windy, hilly road through pastures, woods and farmlands next to the Missouri River.
Within five miles of Jamestown, on 179 we pass most of my family's history. The lands that five generations of the Gentzsch's have farmed. The log cabin where my grandfather was born. The first Gentzsch Family homestead. My Great Grandma Velma's house. The house where my dad was born. The house my parents first lived in (when I was less than one), which didn't have plumbing. The house that I grew up in - where I fished off the front porch during floods. The creek where I found fossils and discovered that I wanted to be an paleontologist. And the houses of all of my immediate relatives.
It was about 10 when we left to go home, nearly past my bedtime! I sat in the backseat and pressed my face to the glass. The stars were amazing. When I was little I would always watch the stars on our way home. (That's how I got to see Haley's Comet!) I felt like I was 9 again.
Then I noticed the fire flies and fell in love. In all the pastures and trees along the road for the entire drive to JC, fire flies sprinkled the night like tinkerbells or blinky christmas lights. Definitely magic! Sometimes it reminded me of BRC from the perimeter. I'll try and take pictures later this summer, but a photo won't be able to communicate the feel and smell of the warm, fresh night air, which is critical to the fire fly experience.
Labels: Missouri
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