Spence and I visited his family. As dull as that may sound to some, it was really quite wonderful. The weather was absolutely perfect with no clouds in the sky! And the wildlife was everywhere! I saw more hummingbirds than I ever saw in my life. We spotted quite a few Monarch butterflies en route to their Mexican destination. I counted four other butterfly species, but alas, I have no clue what they are at the moment. We also saw quite a few deer. The fawns are so cute this time of year.
Just about twenty minutes after our arrival, there was an accident in the neighborhood. A speeding pickup truck has taken one of the sharp turns too fast and spun out, hitting or almost hitting a junked truck parked in front of a trailer home.
(You really could not tell if there was damage to the parked truck, for it had been in a demolition derby just last week. There was hollering and screaming heard from inside the trailer. The chickens in the yard scattered. I must say, no chickens were harmed when this accident occurred. But on with our story....)
The driver of the speeding truck ran from the accident scene because the State Highway Patrol was in pursuit. The sirens were heard literally seconds after the accident. The officer arrived, and followed the offender into the woods.
Upon hearing the sirens, the entire neighborhood came out to see the festivities. All 28 of the neighbors came running! The children lead the pack. Many were barefoot. The heaviest drinkers and smokers huffed their way along, holding up the rear. Our family brigade sauntered down the driveway for a closer view.
The excited neighbors chattered and talked loudly among themselves. We overheard from one out-of-breath neighbor that the State Police had been looking for this particular individual because he was involved in another accident just an hour earlier and also had fled the scene.
Once my father in law heard what he wanted, he decided he saw enough excitement for the day. We all followed him back indoors and away from the police siren that was still blaring.
ALL THIS happened within 30 minutes of our arrival.
The rest of the visit was great. Spencer, his dad and brother in law golfed in a charity golf scramble on Saturday. I remained behind with the women and entertained my niece. She was caring for an adorable well-mannered puppy, so entertaining her was easy.
That night, after dinner and just before moonrise, I went outdoors with my dear niece and happy puppy to gaze at the stars. She pointed out the Milky Way for me and I was stunned. I never saw it so clearly before! Maybe I never truly saw it all! It was beautiful. Breathtaking. A moment I will forever cherish.
Later on that night, I took Spencer outdoors and tried to show him the Milky Way. But the moon was up, and its brightness made it nearly impossible to point out the haze we call Home. Spence DID manage to see a shooting star, and was quite content to stand there in the country quiet and think.
On Sunday, we attended church and enjoyed a lovely brunch afterwards. My sister in law had made gazpacho and I found it rather tasty. I don't think I had gazpacho before. Afterwards, the men watched sports, and rested. After a dinner of hotdogs and the prettiest potato salad, we bid our family goodbye.
The drive home was great, and the iHome and iPod kept us company.
Life is nice.
