Connie's Corner

A few hours in the country...

Yesterday, I drove out to see my sister-in-law and her sister, who lives with her now. Both are in their eighties but able to do most things for themselves. Neither one drives. Luckily, Juanita has six children who live close by, and they take turns driving them both wherever they need to go.

I cannot imagine what it would be like to grow up in a big family, being an only child myself. I have always retained that sense of "aloneness", and many times I feel alone when I am around people. Just a nurturing thing, I guess.

The country drive was nice. It takes about thirty minutes to get to their house driving on county roads. I pass a huge watermelon field, and this time it was speckled with football-size melons. The rows were not perpendicular to or parallel with the road but diagonal. Unusual. And there were two rows sort of close together and then a large path of sand before the next two. Probably for weeding or irrigation and yes, I said sand because that is Florida's dirt. The wildflowers along the sides of the road are still pretty and prolific, too, pink phlox, yellow daisies, and wild gladiolas, a virtual landscape bouquet.

There were a lot of cyclists out on my little ride (bicycles, not motorcycles). In Alachua County (the stress syllable is the "la", an Indian word, Seminole probably), we have bicycle paths on every road with serious cyclists. I mean those with helmets and cycling attire. The country roads offer quiet and little traffic, and contrary to what you might imagine, in the distance they look like rollercoasters, great for leg-strengthening, I guess.

I go through the middle of two small towns on my route, one red-light towns of probably less than five-hundred people, one in Alachua County and one in Levy (the "e" is long down here, not like up north where it is short or on the levies in Louisiana). I was quite the laughing stock when we first moved down here with my abnormal elocution . The weather and scenery were lovely and I had a most enjoyable drive.

Before I left I made a cranberry orange loaf and took with me, still warm from the oven. My house preserved that just-baked cake smell to greet me when I got back home.

until next time...c