Just Another Perfect Day

The state of Iowa has always been a part of my life and my heart.

It doesn't seem possible that it has been 47 years since we moved from our home state of Mississippi to Iowa. Our youngest daughter was born there and both daughters were raised (reared) there.

Some of my best friends live there and a first cousin - who is like a sister lives there. 

I returned this past weekend to help my oldest daughter, a travel nurse, move back home. I couldn't go back without seeing family.  

It was Mother's Day afternoon and my "cuzsister" (a cousin who is like a sister) decided that we were going to visit some old cemeteries. Even though this writer is a "cemetery fanatic" (never pass one up), Teresa was the only one interested in going. Everyone else had eaten too much of her good cooking (her mom was a fantastic cook and she inherited those traits and then improved upon them.) 

She harassed us about going to the point that we gave in - to shut her up!

By the time the day was over and we had laughed so much some of us had to change clothes - we were all happy we had given in and gone with her.

Many of Iowa's country roads are made of crushed limestone rock. You know a "country car" by the white residue that the limestone dust leaves. We drove deeper into the country on one of those roads until we found the cemetery Teresa wanted to show us. 

We left the rock road and drove over deep grass down a narrow lane to a closed gate, leading into a pasture. The remainder of our journey was going to have to be on foot. We went through the gate and Teresa pointed to the cemetery ... about 1/4 mile straight up at the top of a steep hill, surrounded by a fence to keep the cows out.

Couch potato that I am, I could only think...."Aww, heck no!" 

Not to be outdone by the others, I started trudging up that hill - through a pasture. Yes, we had to pick and choose where we'd walk to avoid stepping into "cow pies" and muddy holes - and I was wearing my new white tennis shoes! 

By the time I got to the top, I was gasping for breath. I could only imagine needing Life Flight to get to me......an Ambulance certainly wouldn't be able to make it!  (I wondered how they’d managed to get all those people up to their final resting place.)

. 

The oldest tombstone in the old cemetery read 1823. There may have been others, that were older, but their stone had disappeared - or lay in the pile of broken stones. Several stones were from veterans of the Civil War (Iowa fought for the Union). 

Iowa is the state where the tall corn grows and the wind always blows. This day was no different. We had passed fields, with rows that stretched to the horizon (like our MS Delta fields) with corn already popping through the soil, and we were standing in a small country cemetery atop a high hill.....with the mighty wind blowing. Trees were permanently bent, in a leaning direction, because of the wind.

Any day spent, in a cemetery, is a perfect day.......this had been even better. It was Mother's Day, I was with family.....high on a hill........in the wind blown countryside.....just another perfect day.
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