the grass is greener in PA
I am presently in Hot Springs, South Dakota, in my Airbnb, in a historic building called the Flatiron. It is quite a beautiful place. I can hear a small rushing river across the street, and there is a waterfall coming down the cliff into the river. It is quite a beautiful sight. This is my first time in South Dakota and Nebraska yesterday. I’m getting closer and closer to visiting all fifty states, which is a personal goal. Today I’ll see the Black Hills and do some hiking.
The Black Hills were sacred hunting grounds of the Sioux tribe of Native Americans, along with several others. The U.S. government signed a treaty guaranteeing these people rights to this property. The agreement was upheld until gold was discovered by General George Custer’s resulting in thousands of prospectors swarming the area. This resulted in the Black Hills War of 1876. The government won the war and took back the land. How dare they protect the land they had owned for millennia! Shades of Russia and the Ukraine, perhaps? We would have called them “Indian Givers” when I was a kid. Rightfully, this is no longer acceptable terminology so let’s just say our politicians were not men of their word. Perhaps better terminology would be “Politician Givers.” These double-tongued men were a mystery to the Natives, who highly regarded telling the truth and adhering to their agreements.
The most famous battle of the war was what we now call “Custer’s Last Stand.” Native Americans won that battle but lost the war. I’ll be visiting this National Historic site in a few days. Custer was famous for underestimating the number of foes and their fighting ability. The overconfident general was known as an arrogant man. Sometimes our pride catches up with us, and it is often not a pretty sight.
The Black Hills sport the highest mountain east of the Rockies, and the park extends into Wyoming, where I’ll visit Devil’s Tower, and I’ll write about that later. There are numerous National Monuments and sites in this area.
This bucket-list road trip comes on the heels of another bucket item, Hawaii, which I visited a few weeks ago. There are so many beautiful sites to see in the world, and I’ve only got one life here, so I’m trying to stay busy making it to a few.
Jesus told his friend John that He would create a new earth one day. What a genius idea! Even after all the damage we’ve done to this planet, it’s still a spectacular place, and one could spend a thousand lifetimes trying to see everything. Guess what, the new earth will be free of the results of sin, and we will indeed have way more than a thousand lifetimes to explore its wonders. Woot! Woot!
This brings me to two funny episodes I experienced while touring the Hawaiian Islands a few weeks ago. While traveling, I talk to as many local folks as possible, enhancing my adventures. While visiting two different locations on both Oahu and Kuai, I conversed with people who were employed at the places I was staying. I like to inquire if they have lived there their entire lives or moved to this location for some other reason. This often prompts my new friends to ask about my home. I usually start with Pennsylvania assuming most people know the state exists.
A young man’s eyes lit up at the Polynesian Cultural Center when I started a conversation and told him my home location. He immediately said, “Hershey! Do you live near Hershey?” What?! This kid knows about Hershey?? Not only was he aware of Chocolate Town, but he had visited and loved it. I told him that I lived very near the quaint town, spent a good bit of time there and that my wife worked in Hershey for many years. He was delighted.
I also enjoyed another conversation with a person who experienced Hershey Park and hoped to return. Who woulda thunk it!
How comical. I traveled 4,000 miles to experience a bucket list location, while these folks traveled the same distance to visit my home place. Hershey is known worldwide, and I have visited several foreign countries where the name is “sweet” music to their ears. How delightful!
Southcentral Pennsylvania is a beautiful place with more amenities than many residents realize. Last week, I visited the new Harrisburg Beach Club on City Island and saw one of the most beautiful sunsets I’ve viewed. The latest addition to our area is a lot of fun.
I often hike parts of the world-renowned Appalachian Trail, which winds throughout the entire region. When I walked the Camino Way across Spain, many admired those who trekked the 2,190-mile trail from Georgia to Spain. Consider a moment that people all over the world admire what we have in our backyard every day. I walked 500 miles in Spain and thought I was doing something outstanding!
I always notice something I miss about PA when I travel out west. Most of the terrain is brown compared to the brilliant greens of PA. After three weeks of drab, I will be happy to sit on my deck enjoying the green trees and the small mountain just north of my home. Birds will chirp, my friend Rocky the Squirrel will entertain, and I‘m hoping my Hummingbird friends will have returned from Mexico. How in the world do those little creatures GPS my little locale every year?! Sites in Colorado are spectacular, as are ones in Montana and many other western locations, but green is lovely too.
Why does it seem that the grass is always greener on the other side when it is usually not; it is a human conundrum. Honestly, I did not move to another employment location for thirty-eight years because every time I wanted to, God reminded me that people in the new area would be the same as the one I occupied. As always, He was right, and I am glad for the advice.
This evening, I will admire Mt. Rushmore and the light show after dark. I still cannot understand how this sculpture decided, “Hey, I think I’ll carve some huge heads of famous countrymen on the side of a mountain.” That is a person with vision!
I’m off, and I hope to view some of God and man’s breathtaking locations, but I also hope to meet a few of His most extraordinary works of art, people.
Enjoy your home place, put yourself out to meet new people, and always, always make a difference in someone’s life every day. Be the hero of your own story. Signing off for now.
Live Inspired!
Don Mark
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