Travelin' Home - Part Two
The trip is done – the visit “home” is over – I’m back to where home is now and what home has become.
In my last entry, I shared questions, concerns, uncertainties, and hope for a trip back to my home state of South Carolina. It was a busy, quick, and enjoyable week. I’ve reviewed my earlier post and will share my thoughts based on the ponderings I posed two days before departure.
Columbia – It still looked like my home city though a bit bigger and busier. My brother prepared me for simple things like changes in an intersection near his new residence. Glad he warned me. Traffic flows better there but it was an odd routing. Downtown has been transformed as the city has replaced old cotton storage buildings with a new development area designed to attract tourism and commerce. The feel of history was not left out. It is an impressive change and a boost for a dreary section of town. The city is using its ample riverfront wisely. We spent an afternoon at the new children’s museum. It’s wonderful. My kids had a blast climbing in and out of “Ed” a three story tall “kid.” They climbed his spine and crawled through his chest. When they took the slide out through his digestive system, a funny raspberry sound made us all laugh. We also toured the State House grounds, now with memorials to almost every segment of SC society. The city looks great and that makes me very pleased.
Religious Life – Well, my earlier entry on the retirement of my home church pastor was a bit off. In fact, this wonderful gentleman who’d hoped to retire had been “run off” in a church spat. In all my years there, nothing of the sort had ever come up. This saddens me. I was unable to find out their current worship times so we ended up at the church my brother is currently attending. He usually attends the early service – traditional in style – but we went to the later service – contemporary. It was held not in the sanctuary but in a “bubble”; a blue tent-like facility. Nice worship band though I knew none of the songs – rare for me. They are had an interim pastor – state convention staffer – preach a lengthy Mother’s Day sermon. They took offering last and then said, “Bye; see you next week.” Odd ending to the service.
We had a nice visit with one of my former campus ministers. The new Baptist campus ministry center, an old printing building. Volunteers have done a marvelous job with it. It is in a great location. Jane has been for me a minister, a colleague, and a mentor over the years. It is good to make contact with one who still cares about me, my family, and my progress in life. She’s one of the few remaining touchstones with my hometown and my “past life.”
The Old Neighborhood – I was uncertain how I’d act seeing the house I grew up in for the first time under new ownership. The neighborhood looked pretty much the same – as did my old house. The azaleas were past bloom so I missed that. The shrubs in the back now blocked the view from the back street. Otherwise, it looked the same – and I felt no real emotion. There was one part of seeing my old house that brought a chuckle. In the early ‘70s, my then radical brother painted our basketball backboard - an oversized piece of plywood - white and added, in black, a large peace symbol in the top center. That backboard is still standing, with the peace sign almost faded away. A symbol of a time gone by.
The highlight of the neighborhood visit was a trip to my old elementary school, a few blocks away. The school has been renovated several times over but the playground is pretty much the same with a few modern, safer pieces of equipment. We parked and the kids played for thirty minutes or so on Dad’s old playground. It was lots of fun.
Family – We spend lots of time with my brother. He’s in a new townhome that fits him well. The kids had a great time with their uncle. The boys spent one night with him – their first night ever away from both their parents. We are his only family so he enjoyed himself as well.
Beach Trip – The kids all agree that the day trip to Charleston was the best part of the vacation. We spent the morning among the beautiful anti-bellum and colonial homes of the Battery area. After lunch, we headed to the Isle of Palms and the kids’ first real dip in the ocean. The air and water temps were in the low 70s but the wind was 15-20 mph, making it a chilly day. The kids got their first taste of salt water, leaped over waves, played in the sand, fed gulls, and generally had a blast even while shivering much of the time.
Food – Can’t visit SC without some home cookin’. We ate at several favorite spots. The highlight was eating the buffet at Maurice’s Piggie Park Barbeque. I ate till I was miserable for the first time in years. I rarely get the tender pork smothered in mustard-based sauce. Add rice and hash to the menu and you can’t do better. They even had some fried chicken on the buffet. I brought a bottle of the sauce and some boiled peanuts for my Iowa colleagues to try. The sauce has gotten a thumbs up but only a few like the peanuts.
All-in-all, it was a great trip. Most of our vacations these days are kid-geared to make sure they have things they enjoy. This was a rare occurrence doing kid stuff but doing things meaningful to me and my wife. However, Iowa City is home now and hometown for the kids. We’re glad to be back making our own memories in this place.
In my last entry, I shared questions, concerns, uncertainties, and hope for a trip back to my home state of South Carolina. It was a busy, quick, and enjoyable week. I’ve reviewed my earlier post and will share my thoughts based on the ponderings I posed two days before departure.
Columbia – It still looked like my home city though a bit bigger and busier. My brother prepared me for simple things like changes in an intersection near his new residence. Glad he warned me. Traffic flows better there but it was an odd routing. Downtown has been transformed as the city has replaced old cotton storage buildings with a new development area designed to attract tourism and commerce. The feel of history was not left out. It is an impressive change and a boost for a dreary section of town. The city is using its ample riverfront wisely. We spent an afternoon at the new children’s museum. It’s wonderful. My kids had a blast climbing in and out of “Ed” a three story tall “kid.” They climbed his spine and crawled through his chest. When they took the slide out through his digestive system, a funny raspberry sound made us all laugh. We also toured the State House grounds, now with memorials to almost every segment of SC society. The city looks great and that makes me very pleased.
Religious Life – Well, my earlier entry on the retirement of my home church pastor was a bit off. In fact, this wonderful gentleman who’d hoped to retire had been “run off” in a church spat. In all my years there, nothing of the sort had ever come up. This saddens me. I was unable to find out their current worship times so we ended up at the church my brother is currently attending. He usually attends the early service – traditional in style – but we went to the later service – contemporary. It was held not in the sanctuary but in a “bubble”; a blue tent-like facility. Nice worship band though I knew none of the songs – rare for me. They are had an interim pastor – state convention staffer – preach a lengthy Mother’s Day sermon. They took offering last and then said, “Bye; see you next week.” Odd ending to the service.
We had a nice visit with one of my former campus ministers. The new Baptist campus ministry center, an old printing building. Volunteers have done a marvelous job with it. It is in a great location. Jane has been for me a minister, a colleague, and a mentor over the years. It is good to make contact with one who still cares about me, my family, and my progress in life. She’s one of the few remaining touchstones with my hometown and my “past life.”
The Old Neighborhood – I was uncertain how I’d act seeing the house I grew up in for the first time under new ownership. The neighborhood looked pretty much the same – as did my old house. The azaleas were past bloom so I missed that. The shrubs in the back now blocked the view from the back street. Otherwise, it looked the same – and I felt no real emotion. There was one part of seeing my old house that brought a chuckle. In the early ‘70s, my then radical brother painted our basketball backboard - an oversized piece of plywood - white and added, in black, a large peace symbol in the top center. That backboard is still standing, with the peace sign almost faded away. A symbol of a time gone by.
The highlight of the neighborhood visit was a trip to my old elementary school, a few blocks away. The school has been renovated several times over but the playground is pretty much the same with a few modern, safer pieces of equipment. We parked and the kids played for thirty minutes or so on Dad’s old playground. It was lots of fun.
Family – We spend lots of time with my brother. He’s in a new townhome that fits him well. The kids had a great time with their uncle. The boys spent one night with him – their first night ever away from both their parents. We are his only family so he enjoyed himself as well.
Beach Trip – The kids all agree that the day trip to Charleston was the best part of the vacation. We spent the morning among the beautiful anti-bellum and colonial homes of the Battery area. After lunch, we headed to the Isle of Palms and the kids’ first real dip in the ocean. The air and water temps were in the low 70s but the wind was 15-20 mph, making it a chilly day. The kids got their first taste of salt water, leaped over waves, played in the sand, fed gulls, and generally had a blast even while shivering much of the time.
Food – Can’t visit SC without some home cookin’. We ate at several favorite spots. The highlight was eating the buffet at Maurice’s Piggie Park Barbeque. I ate till I was miserable for the first time in years. I rarely get the tender pork smothered in mustard-based sauce. Add rice and hash to the menu and you can’t do better. They even had some fried chicken on the buffet. I brought a bottle of the sauce and some boiled peanuts for my Iowa colleagues to try. The sauce has gotten a thumbs up but only a few like the peanuts.
All-in-all, it was a great trip. Most of our vacations these days are kid-geared to make sure they have things they enjoy. This was a rare occurrence doing kid stuff but doing things meaningful to me and my wife. However, Iowa City is home now and hometown for the kids. We’re glad to be back making our own memories in this place.
posted by Michael Davis | 12:57 PM
1 Comments:
Michael,
This Okie just finished reading your "blog reflections". Man, I was impressed. Your gift for writing prose has an almost poetic flair, poignant, but with a comfortable, earthy feel. . . In short, you knocked my socks off! You might consider setting your sights on a book writing venture. You most certainly have the ability. In any case, I've added your blog to my "Favorites" list. Have a great week in the Lord and blessings to you and yours!
Tom
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