7/21/2019
Sometimes the excuses for not having written this blog sound a bit puny. However, this is a pretty good one: I left my computer power cord in the motel Monday morning and had no battery till I got a new charger cord today! Incidently, the SIMH is “Till Then”—the bridge (or chorus) of this song by the Mills Brothers says: “Although there are oceans we must cross, And mountains that we must climb, I know every gain must have a loss, So pray that our loss is nothing but time.” All I lost this week was a little time.
Back to the Northern trip. When we left Samaria, IN (location of the reunion), we headed to the alternate route to cross the Ohio river: we went to Madison, IN, and a great steak house called Harry’s for a nice Sunday night dinner. Then, on to Frankfort, KY for the night. Monday morning, visited the city of Frankfort a little, seeing their old downtown skyline which has its own ‘40s-‘50s nostalgic look. For a state capital (4th smallest in the country) in the 21st century, this is truly unique. We also drove over the “singing bridge” twice. Fun.
Then, we drove to Harrodsburg, KY to visit the Pleasant View Shaker Village. The Shakers were a religious sect in the 18th and 19th centuries who, because of some very strange beliefs concerning personal contact and fellowship even with their own members, could not possibly have survived as a religion. It is said there are only two people who are Shakers left alive and they live in Maine. One man, one woman,…and no, that doesn’t mean they’ll survive.
However they were famous for at least two very creative traits: they were excellent craftsmen with their hands–wood, masonry, and the women in quilting, weaving, clothing makers. Their village is a great visit due to those things. The other tremendous artistic attribute was in music. It’s claimed they wrote over 36,000 songs which they performed without accompaniment while dancing a ritualistic religious dance. We saw demonstrations, very talented whether it was likable or not.
The other very enjoyable thing at the Shaker Village was the restaurant. We had an excellently prepared lunch before leaving. It was a trip to be remembered!
A great visit before driving on back to Alabama, going the whole distance with only the last 60 miles or so being on an Interstate Hwy.
Thanks for reading, the Elder
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