Well, the Patriot family took a short trip up to the Gold Country this past weekend. A place where my family went every summer as I was growing up. This was the first time my children had ever been there & in fact. our first family vacation ever. When we had plenty, the little Patriots were pretty little or there was just never time to go away… and then B.O. won the election & vowed to “fundamentally transform” America & took us down the poop chute at the same time & you know the rest. So this was a weekend of firsts. It was fun for us as a family, nostalgic for me and so educational for our children. The last time Mr. Patriot and I were there, I was pregnant with our first little patriot… who is now 6’4 and 14 years old. So…. it’s been a while.
I’ve always loved it there. After 15 years, I wasn’t sure what to expect, but I was so pleasantly surprised. Though it has grown some, all of the original parts of the towns remain intact. Everything I remember from my childhood is just as it was way back then… right down to the certain types of candy they make in the family-owned candy store there. An historical area where you can imagine a Sheriff walking down the middle of the dirt street with his pistol drawn, or a bar brawl in the local saloon. You can imagine ladies in their sunbonnets & skirts, carrying baskets of fresh eggs to the market to sell. Horses, carriages & a stagecoach are all part of the scenery. Aside from that, memories of my sister and I sitting on a bench eating a snowcone as little girls, remembering my grandparents talking to a local character who always played his banjo out in front of his shop & told tall tales…. seeing the barber shop where my Dad always got a trim when we were up there on vacation & remembering my Mom’s very favorite dark chocolate honeycomb from that candy store. And now, so many years later, there I was again but this time with my own family. So many memories flooding through my mind. Realizing I have only my Mom now… and wondering where all the time went, yet being so grateful to be where I am today with my husband and children.
Another wonderful thing I noted was the people. Many older folks up there. Men who hold the door open for you & remember when there is a lady present. Things that I just don’t see anymore… at least where we live. Not just the older generation, but the younger ones too. Overall polite. Polite and real. Where I live you see women who are at least 50% synthetic or more. It’s about expensive homes & cars, where you’re vacationing & how hard you can overschedule & push your kids to excel so that you can brag about them. Up there, I didn’t see any of that. Just normal people, living their lives. Oh I’m sure there are some jerks there too, as the bad always comes with the good. But the ratio is much different.
I am so grateful that things are improving for our family so that we are again able to give our kids these experiences. I’m grateful for a wonderful husband who works so hard for this family & was totally on board with re-visiting a part of my childhood & sharing it with our children. Grateful that they all put up with my non-stop story telling all weekend long! (I really couldn’t help myself).
The icing on the cake? A YUGE “TRUMP” sign on a small gold panning shop. I loved every minute of it. Places like this are the very best parts of the USA. ~~ Sister Patriot
