Country Roads Take Me Home

I know that I have had plenty of "homesick for West Virginia" posts on this blog. Probably too many to count. I have missed it since the moment I drove away tearfully almost three years ago. I did give Texas a chance, but the truth is that one can only truly have one home. In the dysfunction of my parents' divorce and constant moving, I never really felt like I had a "home" in the same way others have experienced. That sense of belonging to a place, and it being a part of who you are - and until I left West Virginia I never realized how much a part of me it had become. I started to sprout roots, though shallow for my 36+ years that were entangled with many precious people. I had never experienced that sensation that I have read about of being called home, but lately I hear the mountain calling to me. We have talked about it, lamented about the reasons we came here, and with a lot of chaos in our home of late due to financial burdens, marital strain and other such things one thing has become crystal clear - it is in the best interest of our whole family to move back to West Virginia. This decision was made a couple of weeks ago, and almost immediately after, we had someone contact us about buying our house though we have yet to put it on the market. Seems that things may align splendidly. If you are a praying person, prayers for clear paths would be much appreciated.

The picture here was snagged from my friend and very talented photographer, Alexandra Beaulieu who gave me permission to use it. She took the picture from a spot perched above St. Peter's Catholic Church located on the hillside in historic Harpers Ferry, WV. Thanks so much Alex.

A Little Visit Home

Last night, while preparing to introduce the book Johnny Tremain to the 6th and 7th grade literature class, I was very excited to find a personal link. I was reading from several resources about the author, Esther Forbes. She was from New England - a daughter of a judge and a historian. I learned that she helped with the labor shortage during World War I by working on a farm in Harpers Ferry, WV. My hometown. I was excited to show the class where I was from on a map - as I shared what I had learned about this author. I also found a fascinating aerial picture in a book in the co-op library taken of the area where the Shenandoah River flows into the Potomac - Harpers Ferry resting between the two to show them.
The other teacher in the class told me that she felt sorry for me that I had to come from such a beautiful place to here! This place is not without its charms. Today it was in the 70s and sunshiny! I didn't mind that one little bit!