Ann Marie and I headed across Pennsylvania to join Chelsey, Jamie and Mateo for Thanksgiving. Both of us had been looking forward to the visit! We were going to share the holiday dinner with them and some of Jamie’s family.
On our way, we came across lots of interesting views and sites. You can’t help but find these things as you explore Pennsylvania. The state is full of them. Here are a couple of the ones we came across, some for the first time.
A fork in the middle of the road in Centerport.
“When you come to a fork in the road, take it” (Yogi Berra)
We did!
An old paddle wheeler sitting in an empty ditch, nowhere near ANY water.
The Midtown Scholar, a fantastic bookstore that is comprised of a group of interconnecting buildings, one of which used to be a theater in the 1920’s. Owned by the current mayor of Harrisburg and his wife, the bookstore sells both new and used books. There are hundreds of thousands of old books and it seems as if it has nearly as many rooms. You can easily get lost in here!
An old factory foundation where the town of Frankstown used to be located,
not far from Hollidaysburg.
One of a few decaying and abandoned homesteads we passed.
The Rockville Railroad Bridge, the longest masonry arch railroad bridge in the world!
Since railroads have been brought up, we also saw a derailed train in the mountains above Altoona. We passed the Statue of Liberty…sitting on a bridge pier in the middle of the Susquehanna. I always watch for it when we head out to visit, there is a geocache hidden on the piling! Someday I’ll get it! We grabbed a couple geocaches on our trip, but skipped this one. We stopped in Harrisburg, both coming and going. Neither of us had ever seen the Capital so we did a drive by while we were there. We also found a memorial for the people of Lily, a town that forced the KKK out of their community in the 1920’s.
Pennsylvania has so many things to offer, you never know what you might find! These were all fun to see but the best part of the journey was spending time with the family!
On the first day, we went with Chelsey and surprised Mateo at his school. Afterwards, we went home and played with his train set and read books together. It‘s such a nice feeling to forget your age and let your inner child out! We drove his trucks and trains around on the table for what seemed like hours.
The next day, on Thanksgiving, we played some more and after Mateo went down for a nap, Ann Marie and I went to search for a couple more geocaches. After we came home, some of Jamie’s family came over. We sat and talked, we snacked and then sat down together and ate dinner. We shared stories and laughed. The meal was lovely but the camaraderie was even better. To see how a family is growing gives us strength for the future. We listened, we learned and we loved!
Seeing family we hadn’t seen in a while, hearing about both the victories and the disappointments in our lives, these are all part of the gathering. We took our forks, (from the table, not the road) and ate a wonderful dinner. We listened to each other as we shared our views and experiences. I can’t help but feel that everyone was thankful for all the wonderful things we have!
I thought about those we lost and also about those who are on their way. I am thankful for those who have gone, thankful that I had the chance to know and love them, thankful for all the beauty and love they brought to my life! Reveling in the present, I played with my grandson and imagined how he will progress as he grows up, how he will accept and help his new brother. These are some of the things I couldn’t help but think about and give thanks for!
On Friday we played with Mateo and then more of the Pittsburgh family arrived. The 7 of us did another round of the Pizza Bracket Contest. Jamie got pizza from 3 different shops and we voted on which one was best. (A shop called Anthony’s won this time) This contest has been in the works for years now. Someday, we will find out what the best pizza in the Harleysville area is!
Saturday morning, we left and headed back. We were missing Mateo (and the family of course!) by the time we came to the stop sign at the end of the block! The warm glow of the holiday and the visit stuck with us. We headed home happy and content and thankful for all the things we hold dear!
1 comment:
Beautiful story. Would love to go to that book store
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