As we rolled back to Nebraska
cross country this August, a bit of a family feud erupted around which side trip or excursion
we would take. We've done The Field of Dreams (http://www.fieldofdreamsmoviesite.com/) and baseball games galore, but my plea, as always, was
for Niagara Falls (http://www.niagarafallsstatepark.com). Unfortunately, since
I was the only one who brought my passport, I would be the only one allowed to
walk the Nik Wallenda tightrope across to the Canadian side of the falls. Immediately this was perceived as a problem!
Now, because Ian was in Omaha, and Derrick and Colin were in the car, their
votes to stop at the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in Cleveland, Ohio overpowered
my single, yet passionate vote for Niagara Falls. Truth be told, Ian would have voted with them
anyway. Okay, so it was with the
dejected pout of a pregnant possum that I drove us in the "The Forest
City", "Metropolis of the Western Reserve", "Sixth
City", "The Rock 'n' Roll Capital of the World", or
"C-Town." You know, Cleveland,
Ohio (http://www.city.cleveland.oh.us/CityofCleveland/Home).
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| Cleveland, OH |
Lola, the GPS, led the way. As we approached the side Boulevard for
parking near the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame (rockhall.com), we saw it was
beautiful. On the shores of Lake Erie,
the city was absolutely radiant. I knew
that there was something synchronistic about this visit. Not only was it Wednesday night at 6 PM, and
the Museum usually closed at 5:30 PM all summer long on every night BUT
Wednesday night, as I made my way around the corner to the front of the
triangular building, I was sure that I heard these lofty lyrics floating across
the hot humid air. “Get tired of travelin
and you want to settle down./I guess they can't revoke your soul for tryin,Get
out of the door and light out and look all around./Sometimes the lights all
shinin’ on me; Other times I can barely see.
Lately it occurs to me what a long, strange trip it's been./ Truckin, Im a goin home. whoa whoa baby, back where I belong, Back home...
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| Special Exhibition at The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame |
Speaking of the call of the mythical Sirens, here we were truckin’ on
our way home from Vermont to Nebraska and immediately, I was transported back to
the Summer of 1989 at Foxboro Stadium.
My BFF Kathy had convinced me that we had to attend this Grateful Dead
show. The sociological implications
alone would be worth the price of admission and implications there were. I was stunned to see how these people, some
of them even couples with children, lived following the Dead from show to show.
It was an opportunity I will never forget and am so grateful (sorry about this one, really I am) that I had
a chance to experience it. So while Derrick
and Colin were captivated by the Beatles, (Jackson) Browne and Bruce displays, I
was captured by the Dead. Stay with me
here…
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| Summer of 1989 |
A highway is really an apt metaphor for the passage of time (Isn't it ironic that we are even leaning on our cars in these pictures) and the
different seasons of life. As we
connected with friends over the course of the summer, I was reminded of how
they continue to influence my life... in my eating (for example… high fructose
corn syrup = bad, eggplant = good), in my thinking and in my dreaming. As with my extraordinary sisters, I am
surrounded with this incredible group of inspirational women who have been
through so much in their lives, tragedy even touched our close-knit group again
this summer, but they remain principle-centered and faith-filled role models
for me. They fill me up and are signs
for me of God’s love in the world.
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| Summer of 2012 |
With that being said, Jackson Browne’s “Running on Empty” lyrics jog through my head because the song uses similar road of life imagery. “Looking out at the road rushing under my wheels/I don't know how to tell you all just how crazy this life feels/ I look around for the friends that I used to turn to pull me through/ Looking into their eyes I see them running too/ Running on-running on empty/ Running on-running blind/Running on-running into the sun /But I'm running behind …”
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| Running on Inspiration... |
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