"Hard workin' men, good-hearted women". That explains George's extended family. We spent almost a week visiting them in Ohio and Michigan, with all the cousins on the west coast and east coast attending.
I now understand where many American values come from - the family farm, a church community that cushions and protects, and service organizations that fill the cracks, keeping an eye on children and the disadvantaged. We appreciated farm food, wonderfully home-grown, freshly picked and simply prepared.
At Helen's home it was common to have many different vegetables served at a meal, all cooked to perfection. We also had a Sunday lunch in a rural cafe where breakfast was served all day, and dinner at a Lion's Club meeting that featured chopped red jello with Dream Whip sprayed on top - something I haven't had in decades. The following posts convey images from the trip - visiting family farms, successful family businesses, and the stories that haunt old cemeteries.
We had good flights, easy connections, and the most wonderful accommodations, one of which was a bed and breakfast out in the country.
I spent several mornings, coffee in hand, walking through an old barn, and through meadows where mist hovered in the morning. Just an exquisite place, the heartland!
