This past week found your MoM driving from Portland, Oregon to basically Abilene, Texas. We saw a ton of beautiful scenery then we hit the plains…

Just to set the stage properly, I do not really enjoy the Great Plains. It’s so flat out there you could basically use Texas as a straight edge! We finally arrived after three days of driving late in the day with the sun poised to set. An hour or so after it got dark we were greeted with a gorgeous moonrise. That encouraged us to just stop everything the next night and just watch it.

My friend was not really into the idea, but after a lot of cajoling from his wife, he joined us on the porch. Moonrise that night was about 10:56, so we got to listen to quite a bit of “What are we doing out here?” from Dad and son, but MoM and Mom kept assuring them that it would be worth it.

And it was…

The stars that show themselves out in the middle of nothing are far more persistent than those that try to fight through city light and clouds in Portland. It was magnificent. Then the moon finally made its appearance. My friend apologized for his doubt.

Sometimes we need to just sit and relax in the dark in order to…

–Rise Up