Memory

Today, I am a guest author on Jean’s blog. I am Jean’s husband Don. I have been very fortunate over the years to be able to travel to so many places in this country. We love to travel. My love of travels began early in life. My first large trip was in 1964, a road trip out west, in a 1963 Chevrolet Corvair, through South Dakota, Colorado, Utah, and Arizona. By the way, there were no Interstate Highways beyond Iowa City, Iowa, just two lane roads with lots of small towns. Yes, I travelled parts of route 66.


We just recently completed what we called our friendship tour through the Southeast. One of our stops, near Ashville, North Carolina, was Chimney Rock State Park. This park is where the latest movie "Last of the Mohicans" was filmed with Daniel Day-Lewis. We entered the park after crossing a very narrow bridge over a gentle river in the tiny tourist town of Chimney Rock. The entrance road is narrow winding road climbing steadily in elevation until we reached the parking lot. As we exited the car and walked across the parking lot and looked up we could see a winding set of about 450 stairs leading up to the top of Chimney Rock, Jean, mentioned, “We were here before.” I answered, “no way,” and we began our slow climb to the top. On top, we marveled at the view overlooking the Great Smoky mountains with their late fall muted colors on the left. On the right, Lake Lure below. The lake meanders in and around the mountain valleys below. Again, Jean stated, “we were here before.” Again, I emphatically repeated “no way, we have not been here.”



Chimney Rock

After, enjoying the gorgeous views from the top, we descended, this time by elevator to the parking lot. There was a side trail about a mile long that would take us up to “Hickory Nut Falls.” When we reached the waterfall, again, Jean repeated “we have been here before. This is where Bob and Roger Sieben, were stung by a swarm of wasps”. This time our conversation became a little more heated with comments about my memory. This time I began to argue, “no way, I would certainly remember this beautiful park”. I did remember a wasp incident, but it was surely somewhere else. Ha, Ha.

 
As I sat at our computer one recent December evening, looking over and organizing our photos from the recent trip, I looked back and viewed some old photos when our kids were ages 7 to 10 from 1982. Guess what, we were at Chimney Rock in 1982, when we were on our way out to the Worlds Fair to Knoxville, TN. Note the photos below, on right is our most recent photo, and on the left the photo from 1982. The bottom of the page photo is by the Hickory Nut falls in 1982, with me and the kids.



1982



Nov 9, 2012







Well, to make a long story short, I am wrong again. I guess, the reason why I always enjoy where we go, I believe it is the first time. In my defense, I have been to a lot of overlooks in my years of travels, and lots of Chimney Rocks. If you are ever near Ashville, be sure to visit Chimney Rock. The view is spectacular.


 

Don, Bob, Don, & Mike Hickory Nut Falls 1982



Don Chilson


 

Happy Advent

This isn't meant to be a plug for the real meaning of Christmas, but it's okay if that's what you get from it. It is also a week late in coming due the the procrastinating nature of the author.

On black Friday we were in McDonald's when Don overheard a conversation at the counter of a man talking about a presentation of Handl's Messiah at a neighboring parish coming up on December 2. This happens to be our favorite holiday music. So he looked into it and got some tickets for the performance which was scheduled for the first Sunday of advent.

The music was performed by the Metropolitan Chicago Symphany Orchestra and the St. Raphael Parish Choir in the church itself. It was absolutely amazing. The acoustics were as fine as anywhere, and the music could well have been sent from heaven above. All for the small price of $10. After a brief intermission, the second act was a short concert of traditional Christmas carols both religious and secular. The orchestral arrangements were updated to sound current without loosing their traditional flavor. Of course, then came the children involved in a light procession singing Silent Night making it seem just right. We left there feeling now it is time to let the holiday spirit begin.

There are no pictures today, because my musings are all about the sounds that warm my heart.

Beautiful music which though created by man can only be inspired by God.

Little boys singing "Twinkle, Twinkle, little pizza"

A little girl writing a story about the turkey who tried his best to survive Thanksgiving.

A 4 year old explaining the nature of Zombies and insisting it is all true because it is in the movies

Playing " Let's steal things from Pa"

Quiet conversation with the oldest of the bunch.

The unending joy and giggles of all the grandchildren.

These are the real sounds of Advent. I can wait lose myself in these while I wait for the special joy that is Christmas to arrive.