It has been a very interesting and travel filled summer so far. Here’s a brief rundown of our last 3 trips.
Trip #1: Nashville
From June 9-18, Debbie, Kayla and I were traveling with 4 other adults, and 19 other high school kids to Tennessee by van to build what turned out to be a mother in law type room onto a dilapidated shed next to a rundown house so the brother of the family living in the house would have a place to stay. It was quite the experience. Not only did we have to drive some 21 hours over two days, but we had to watch out that we didn’t cut a finger off with a saw or mash one with a hammer. Then of course we had to be on the lookout for brown recluse and black widow spiders; poison ivy and poison oak and poisonous snakes (cottonmouth’s, water moccasins and eastern diamondback rattlesnakes). We saw plenty of the spiders and plenty of the poison oak and ivy, but fortunately no snakes. Over the four working days we had we got the building up, roofed, siding on and the inside ready for what little plumbing and electricity it would have. I cannot find the words to describe the living conditions this family lived in, but I can tell you they were the friendliest, happiest people I’ve been around in a long time. The last day brought some excitement as my wife, daughter and 5 others from our group got lost for four hours in “Buggy Top Cave,” while I and the rest of our group were 70 miles away in Nashville have a grand ol’ time. There were a couple of anxious hours where I thought our last night in Tennessee would be spent on a search and rescue mission.
Trip #2: Flagstaff
Kayla is entering her senior year at GJHS and is looking for colleges. So a couple of weeks after we got back from Tennessee we all loaded up in the car and made the 7 hour drive to Flagstaff, AZ. so she could tour Northern Arizona University. Pretty much after you leave Monticello, UT., there is nothing but miles and miles of nothing. But Flagstaff is a wonderful oasis sitting at 7000 feet above sea level. The temperatures were in the mid 80’s and the breeze was cool. The best part of this long weekend was that our son, his wife and our grandson came up from Phoenix so we got to be Nana and Pops for a few days.
Trip #3: D.C.
Then on July 9, the three of us flew off to Washington D.C. for a variety of reasons. Kayla wanted to visit two colleges there (American University and George Mason University), we wanted to play tourists for a couple of days and Kayla had a leadership conference we left her at. While playing tourist, we got to spend a day at the National Mall. I had never seen the WWII Memorial. It is beautiful and inspiring. It is all a wonderful reminder of what a great country we live in and that freedom is not free (from the Korean War Memorial). People have sacrificed their families, possessions, property and their very lives so that we can have our freedoms. But the most moving time we spent was at the National Holocaust Memorial Museum. I’m pretty easily moved to tears and I was constantly having to remove my glasses and dry my eyes during this three hours of experiencing the Holocaust. Man’s inhumanity to his fellow man is hard for me to wrap my head around. And it continues today.
After a very busy few months, it looks like the travels are over and it’s time to settle into some real summer activities, like playing golf, watching the GJ Rockies and tending the garden. Oh and possibly working.
Mike Berry is a Registered Representative offering securities through Cambridge Investment Research, Inc., a Broker/Dealer, Member FINRA/SIPC. Investment Advisor Representative, Cambridge Investment Research Advisors, Inc., a Registered Investment Advisor. Legacy Wealth Management, LLC and Cambridge are not affiliated. Cambridge does not offer tax advice.
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