Last week was incredibly stressful. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
Our neighborhood shares in the care of an elderly widow across the street.\u00a0\u00a0For the past six months she hasn\u2019t left the house, except for an occasional venture to the front yard to pick up sticks.\u00a0\u00a0And since May she\u2019s gotten worse. She wouldn\u2019t let us help pay her bills, or accept the groceries we brought.\u00a0\u00a0She looked starved and ill, phone calls were answered with \u201cI\u2019m in bed, I don\u2019t feel well\u201d and a hang up.\u00a0\u00a0The County Adult Services weren\u2019t much help, saying \u201c\u2026if she wants to starve to death, we don\u2019t like it but it\u2019s her choice.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
We\u2019ve been reaching out to her family for months.\u00a0\u00a0They also said there\u2019s nothing they were willing to do.\u00a0\u00a0Monday the neighbors got together: a \u201cteam meeting\u201d as we struggled to determine our next move.\u00a0\u00a0We were afraid that the only course was utility shutoffs and back to the County authorities.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n
But, at the last moment, a niece stepped up. The family kept her in the dark about what was going on; but we were able to find her and reach out. On Thursday our widow friend let the niece call the ambulance, and she went to the hospital. She was very frail, but still proud and tough. She wouldn\u2019t be carried to the squad, she walked out on her own.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
They\u2019re working on getting her better, and though she looks tiny in a hospital bed, she\u2019s smiling.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Last week was another week of turmoil and hate in American politics. We are very tuned into what\u2019s going on, sometimes too much so. A steady diet of our current American disaster creates a constant surge of adrenalin. After a while, it\u2019s hard to stay angry. It\u2019s exhausting.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
And then came the shooting in El Paso; and then Dayton.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
In my family the phrase is \u201cget out of Dodge.\u201d\u00a0\u00a0It comes from the old Western movies; when the shooting starts it\u2019s \u201ctime to get out of Dodge City.\u201d\u00a0\u00a0It was time to go, get away from the stress, change the scene, and simplify life.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n
So we packed up the camper, the truck and the dogs, and headed to Burr Oak State Park. It’s located in southeastern Ohio, the foothills of the Appalachians. As retired folks, we’ve discovered that even in the summer you can have park campgrounds pretty much to yourselves if you go during the week. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
It’s not all leisure, but it\u2019s different.\u00a0\u00a0It\u2019s an early morning hike with the dogs, and a campfire to cook dinner. We tried frozen fish patties for the first time last night \u2013 and maybe the last!! Brats tonight; can’t go wrong with them.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
But we aren’t fully disconnected. I\u2019m writing this essay sitting at a picnic table as the sun comes over the trees, my young dog Atticus (yellow lab) trying to bite the flies that try to bite him.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
We have all of the electronic devices and MSNBC streamed, and we can keep track of the neighborhood by text and email. But it\u2019s still different, it\u2019s more fundamental. It’s a walk down to the shower house; better to go early, or the walk back up the hill will make you need another shower. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
It\u2019s Trump country here and certainly our experience in other campgrounds has been the same.\u00a0\u00a0But people are courteous, and they are aware that while campers may be close to each other, everyone is here for a little peace, a little nature, and a little relaxation.\u00a0\u00a0And there\u2019s beer on ice in the cooler.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Yesterday it was tough to even try to disconnect.\u00a0\u00a0The debates were raging on Facebook and Twitter about guns, mental health, racism, and whether our Nation can ever find the will to prevent these horrific events.\u00a0Try as we might to concentrate on the cicadas and the blue sky, the battles raged back and forth, and the signal reached all the way into the foothills and the woods.\u00a0\u00a0We had lots to say, and put in more than our \u201ctwo cents.\u201d\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Today we\u2019ll try to disconnect a little more.\u00a0\u00a0There are books to read, and a lake to visit, and the dogs will absolutely demand another long walk.\u00a0\u00a0 Our camper is \u201cout of Dodge.\u201d\u00a0\u00a0Now we\u2019re working on getting our minds to follow.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"