Relativity Rocks

A couple of years ago I was privileged to take a road trip cross country to South Dakota with a friend. I purchased a card for my digital camera and was able to take photos of many things we saw onthe journey.

Of course,I took a great many more images on the trip out than I did on the journey home. Vacations are like that. You are fresh on the trip out and every visita is witnesed with wonder. Coming home is less magical. The road is much shorter, the scenery less inspiring.

For one thing, the trip is a lot quieter. My companion and I had run out of small talk days before. We were weary, and the golden days of autumn had been washed away by a dismal gray rain. The dogs were used to traveling now. They slept between pit stops. Even our wardrobes had lost their savor - we learned that one or two outfits with discreet layers are more than enough fashion for a great trip.

I was thrilled, however, the day we crossed the Mississippi River. I believe we were driving across Minnesota, and one particular rest stop featured a hiking trail that seemed pefect for exercising Cinder and Pebbles, Melanie's toy and standard poodles.

Wonder of Wonders! The path we took led straight to the banks of the river - a river I had crossed much further south where it was ever bit as mighty as one might imagine. The Mississippi of our odyssey, however, was no more than stone's throw across - a mere creek bordered by trees just beginning to don their autumnal finery. The sun shone for a brief moment, and I snapped the photo you see above.

I still think of the Mississippi as a grand river, and it is. Everything, you see, is relative - especially when you happen to catch a glimpse of it on the sunny side. Terry

Terry L White -Author of the Chesapeake Heritage Series
"Travel Through Time With Terry"
http://www.terrylwhitesblog.blogspot.com/