Over the River and Through the Woods

It's time to finally record the events of my trip home for Thanksgiving.  I was very much looking forward to going back to Virginia for the first time in over a year and seeing Mom and Dad and Marinda, who had just gotten back from her mission to the Philippines the week before.  I had been worried for months that I would have trouble with snow cancelling or delaying flights on my way there or back, but fortunately everything went smoothly.

North River from Wildwood Park in Bridgewater

To keep the price reasonable, I flew in on Thanksgiving itself. I felt kind of bad about that because it seemed like I was stealing Marinda's first Thanksgiving back, but I guess she didn't mind.  I hope she really didn't, anyway. I came in at 4, so we went right to a restaurant that Mom had found in DC that was serving Thanksgiving dinner. It was surprisingly decent, and Dad even thought it was the best turkey he'd ever had.  I couldn't agree on that one.  I had some extremely delicious fried turkey on my mission that I've never had anything to compare to.  It would have been nice to have a real Thanksgiving dinner, but we never had time to get to it, and I'm perfectly satisfied to sacrifice it this year in favor of getting to spend time with my family.

We were talking about going down to the Biltmore estate the next day, which I've long been interested in seeing, but Dad had a baptism to go to and the price was way more than I'd ever anticipated.  That place is seriously expensive.  It's around as much as visiting a good-quality theme park like Busch Gardens.  We would have only had a few hours to enjoy it anyway, so it didn't seem worth all the trouble.  I'm still interested in seeing it someday, but I would hope to find a Groupon or some sort of discount for the admission.

The lodge along Mossy Creek

Instead of going to Biltmore, on Friday we went down to one of my favorite places in the valley, the Blackfriar Theater, which does Shakespearean and other classical plays in a recreation of the original Blackfriar.   Besides my family, this is honestly one of the things I've most missed since moving.  I used to keep on top of the schedule quite well, and we would go to practically all the pay what you will performances of new plays each season.  All the Shakespeare plays, I should say.  The only non-Shakespeare one we ever went to was A Christmas Carol two years ago.

This time we went for full price for the first time and saw Pericles.  Unfortunately, it was also the worst of the plays we've been to see there as well, though it was still well done.  There's a good reason Pericles is not remembered among Shakespeare's major works.  It simply isn't as compelling and well-crafted as many of the others.  While there were some good lines, there was nothing as wonderful as many of Shakespeare's well-known speeches.  The disjointed action spanning so much time and distance also didn't help so much, I think.

Some cute ponies I made friends with along Mossy Creek

While none of us were especially in love with the play itself, we did have a good time going there together.  For me, it was awesome just returning there and seeing familiar actors and all again.  They really did do a good job with the material they had.  While we probably would have been better off going to see Macbeth the next day in the end, it was also fun to see something new.  I've never read Pericles before, so it was all fresh for me.

Returning to a good theater for the first time since I left also made me realize what a dearth it has left in my life.  Who knew that quality, accessible, and affordable theater holds such and influential role in flavoring life?  I really need to find something comparable that I can go to here in Utah.  I might just have to bite the bullet and pay more than I'm used to for it.  Great plays are enjoyed in an entirely different way when they are performed rather than just read.

Saturday was pretty low-key.  I went running down Mossy Creek Road, which has always been my traditional route at home.  It is a truly lovely little rambling gravel road that goes along the creek through the countryside.  There are a lot of picturesque farms along it and just general scenes of pastoral beauty.  I also got to see a few of my Mennonite former neighbors on the way, which was nice.  I miss having the Mennonite influence around.  They are really nice people and it's always fun to have their buggys, sleighs, and such around.

After that, we basically just went out and did some shopping.  I didn't get much, but I did find some nice jeans, which is good because a lot of my old ones don't fit properly now.  I also got two pairs of boots on good doorbuster prices.  I don't really own boots, so it was nice to find a few to diversify my shoe options a bit.

We also set up the Christmas tree on Saturday and did so in record time.  Usually, it takes us a while after Thanksgiving to get the tree up, get the lights on, and finally put up the ornaments.  I was eager to enjoy our family tree for the few days I was around, however, so Mom and I worked to get everything done in one night, and Marinda came in to help with some of the ornaments at the end.  Our tree isn't like most families now have with perfect, coordinating decorations.  Instead, it is the work of many years.  Our tradition is that for many years, Mom has bought each kid (and sometimes herself and Dad) a new ornament each year representing something that we did that year.  This makes putting up the tree each year a trip down memory lane each time.  As ballerinas, chickens, snowmen, knights, and historic houses come out and our added to the tree, they help to tell the story of our family.  Getting everything done quickly meant that I had several days to appreciate the tree.

I just liked the unfocused lights

On Sunday, Marinda was giving her homecoming talk in our home ward.  She did a good job with it.  It was nice to get to hear some new stories from her and such.  She has definitely grown a lot over her mission.  Serving as a missionary does have a amazing way of opening your eyes to both the world around you as well as eternity in all new ways.  So much more is out there than we typically open our eyes to.  Unfortunately, Marinda thought that sacrament ended 10 minutes earlier than it really did, so she cut her talk shorter than she could have.  It would have been good to hear the rest of what she prepared, but I'm sure the congregation in general didn't mind much having some extra time between blocks.

Marinda and I then drove over to Charlottesville and attended my old YSA ward.  It was awesome to see many of my old friends there and reconnect with people I haven't seen for awhile.  I also got to meet some new folks, which was also fun.  It was a testimony meeting for them, since they had Stake Conference the next week.  I'm glad I had the chance to hear from many people I knew.  Marinda also got up as did I briefly.

Monday we went to a few of the small local shops mostly in Dayton.  It was interesting to visit some of these little country antique sort of places, most of which I haven't been to before.  Dayton is a very cute little town, so it was enjoyable to spend a bit of time there.  We also went to Wildwood Park in Bridgewater that day, which is one of my favorite spots in our little town.  It's a very peaceful area, and was quite deserted when we went since it was reasonably cool.  Since I left, someone has added a poem box on one of the trees where people can exchange poems.  I guess that's a new, trendy thing now, but I thought it was kind of a fun idea.  We looked through a few of the poems left, but didn't have materials on hand to contribute one of our own.

Tuesday was my day to fly home, so it was back to Reagan.  I did over 8 hours of flight and got delayed about 30 minutes, but I was still able to get home without much of a hitch.  It was a long, pretty tiring day, but very much worth it.

I'm really glad that I got the chance to go home at that time.  It worked out really well that I got to hear Marinda's talk and see her soon after she got home and before her attention would have been more divided with her boyfriend, Paul, being in town.  I feel like our relationship is much better now than it has ever been, which I'm very happy about, partly because she has grown a lot, but probably more because I've grown a lot myself.  I know I haven't always done everything I should to be a supportive sister, but I've come to a place where I'm able to do that much better now for a variety of reasons.  I hope that I will be able to continue that trend once she comes out here again for school.

Saw this Muscovy duck at Wildwood Park.  He was pretty north of his normal range.

I won't see Mom and Dad again for at least a few months, so while seeing Marinda again for the first time in a long time, it was almost more important to enjoy the limited time with them.  I'm very much the product of my parents and all they've done for me, and more than anyone else on Earth, I know that they will always be there for me no matter what I may do or have happen.  Not everyone has that blessing, and it's one for which I will always be grateful.

Going home is always something people look forward to, and Bridgewater has become very much home to me, though I also see American Fork as an adopted home as well now.  There is something slightly miraculous about a well-known place filled with beloved people.  I've been away for a long time, but going back has made me appreciate the things that are there more fully now that they aren't always immediately to hand.  It's a good reminder to not miss the wonders around me by allowing myself get caught up in daily drudgery.  It's important to lift up your eyes each day to all you've been given.  I'm grateful for what I've been blessed with, both now and in the past, and I'm glad I got the chance to appreciate that more perfectly.