The National Park Near Charlottesville

The first thing we visited, while in Virginia recently, was Shenandoah National Park. The day was a bit cool, just enough for a light jacket. At first, Tommy wanted to remain at home, rather than drive in the car.

I don't remember what we said, but once he decided to go with us, he hurried and found shoes, sweatshirt and pants.

The view from drive on the the skyline was spectacular, although a week or two later would have shown the beautiful fall colors--red, yellow, orange--that shouted from the hills.

The first pictures were ones, that not only showed the hardwood trees in the woods, but they also gave a view of the Blue Ridge Mountains in the background.

The first night that Ann, Jack and I arrived at my son's house, we could hear the rain drops falling upon the leaves, crickets chirping in the darkness, and after the storm cleared from the skies, I noticed that if stars could shout, their light would have shattered windows in everyone's house. I haven't seen stars that bright in years.

In fact, I haven't seen night sky like that in a very long time. The clear view reminded me of our family's ranch in Northern Utah.

There's nothing like memories to give a person the false security of thinking things were actually better in the past. But in the case of that ranch, there is nothing false about it. It was an incredible way to grow into early adulthood. Maybe that's why I learned to love Virginia's mountains and skies. Although different, there is still something familiar about it there, something that reminds me of those uncomplicated days in Snowville.

And did I mention already the fact that the Blue Ridge Mountains appeared in the distance.

It was a beautiful day in the park that day, one that prepared us for the things we would do on the trip. The best part was that it was only 15 minutes away from my son's house. There was not a long drive to get there.

After returning to high plains desert, I still miss the Virginia woods: the chirping of crickets and frogs at night, the scent of hardwood forest, and the feel of country air. These were things that made everything so peaceful and so reminiscent of the lifestyle of my youth in desert mountains. There is no sage in Virginia, no cedar trees, no cactus. It's very different, but at the same time so beautiful.