Our brief, but eventful, weekend ended yesterday.

We left Lusk about 8:00 am “their time” or 9:00 am “our time”. I’m certain the Graham family has a love/hate relationship when the Z’s come to visit. They are always so good to us and take care of us so well. And we ALWAYS have a grand time with them – ALWAYS! BUT…when it’s time to say goodbye, I know they are secretly thinking, “Oh no, here we go again”. Goodbyes are never easy for me. The tears come easily – they always have so I can’t even blame it on getting older. And then there’s the dreaded hugs. I know not everyone is a hugger; however, I am. And if you’re going to be someone I care about…you’re going to get hugged – at some point!

We left after the hugs (there were no tears…well, none that were visible to the Graham’s anyways). Taylor behind the wheel and Callie sitting shotgun. I took the backseat for two reasons. 1. The car we drove has awful front seats even though it’s supposed to be a “luxury” car. All they do is create more of a lower back issue for me than I already have. 2. I figured the sisters would have a good time being able to chat. Taylor was on a mission. We needed to get to the Kearney Archway in plenty of time to go through the exhibit and it closed at 5:00 pm “our time”.

The trip from Lusk to Kearney went pretty fast, considering we didn’t stop any longer than necessary. We arrived about 3:10. Plenty of time to get through the exhibit. When we stepped out of the car, we were hit with a fairly stiff northern breeze – but it was warm. Very warm. Like 83 degrees warm. I can’t remember who asked this question, “I wonder if the lilacs will be blooming when we get home?” My reply was, “I doubt it, the buds were pretty tight when we left.”

The Kearney Archway is also a point on the Nebraska Passport 2018 program – double whammy! We paid our admission ($12 for adults), got our passport stamped and headed to the next location which was set up at the base of the escalator.  It’s a self-directed tour via a headset and device that when touched to the numbers (found scattered all over the “museum”) will tell a story about what you’re viewing. Taylor had been there before, Callie and I had not. I was excited for the experience but I think Callie was even more so. She absolutely loves the time period of the Oregon Trail. And so do I. If I believed in reincarnation, I would almost have to believe that I was once a pioneer traveling westward with a caravan. I’d like to believe I made it to my destination and wasn’t one of those who were left in a shallow grave along the trail.

Right off the bat, the narrator was telling me about the “people” we were viewing as we made our way to the top. The woman to the left was pregnant and that’s her husband in front of her. They were climbing the hill as the man at the top was waving to the rest of the group coming down the trail. The young girl to the right is a 12-year-old girl who, in real life, kept a diary of her days on the route and was reading one of her excerpts to us. 

Nearing the top.

Doesn’t this look real? While we were in this particular section of the exhibit, a thunderstorm rolled through the prairie. They’ve done a phenomenal job of recreating the prairie and what it looked like in 1840. The sight and sounds…

Notice the white “tag” on the back of the woman pushing the wagon? That’s one of the numbers to hold the hand-held device close to and listen to the narrator explain what is happening.

I found this particular scene heartbreaking. The pioneers began their journey with such high hopes of a new start. They left their homes and previous life with the idea of beginning a new life in a new territory. Before it was over, they were leaving pieces of their prior life scattered along the trail…including loved ones. They sacrificed so much for us to experience what we have now!

The exhibit is not just about the pioneers and the Oregon Trail. It’s more to explain the history of transportation beginning with the Oregon Trail, leading to the Pony Express, the railroad and the Golden Spike, the Lincoln Highway and now. And to think ALL of this occurred over the past 200 years – that’s really only three generations ago. It’s quite amazing to me, when I think about it.

Approximately 100 years after the pioneers made their way west in their covered wagons, cars and cabins and “road gypsy” camps began springing up along the Lincoln Highway. I’m pretty certain I would have been wanting to hang with these “road gypsies” if I had been alive in this time era. I guess I am a “road gypsy” – just in a different way.

It took us two hours to make our way through the exhibit. Would I do it again? Absolutely!! I’d go back in a heartbeat if someone wanted to stop and look at it. This is definitely one of those things you should do if you’re ever travelling through or near Kearney, Nebraska.

We got home about 7:30ish. It was like coming back to a completely different world! The trees were green – no more dead-looking brownness of winter. The flowers and trees are bursting with blooms and smelling absolutely amazing. Today, I have been doing laundry and hanging it out on the clothesline for the first time. I’m not the only one happy that spring has finally made it’s arrival…the birds have been singing since the first rays of daylight. I absolutely LOVE this time of year! The best part about winter? Spring!

The view from my living room window this morning. 

This crabapple tree is beyond full of blooms this year! I hope it doesn’t get too hot too fast or very windy. I’d like to savor every minute I have with these colors and smells.

The colors of my yard – well, part of it anyways.

Taylor’s apple tree. She started a seedling from an apple and it grew and it grew and it grew. We planted it outside one spring before leaving for harvest and it survived. It doesn’t produce large apples to eat – only larger than normal crabapples which the squirrels absolutely adore. Stand close to it and listen and you’ll hear the buzzing of the bees. They’re certainly loving it right now, too. 

Remember me saying I doubted the lilacs would open before we got home? I was wrong. Oh how I wish I could share the smells!

One flower that I wait all year-long for is the iris. This little guy is one of the smaller, first-to-open. It looks like I don’t have a lot of blooms this year. I wonder if that’s the result of such a long, cold winter?

 The chatter of the little Jenny Wren is one that will forever remind me of spring. When she returns, I know it truly is spring. Her chatter is coming through loud and strong right now. If I could draw a heart, I would.