Day 25 - Lake Texoma?

June 28, 2009

I left the Riverside Inn this morning and marched south on route 201.
On my way out of town, I briefly stopped at Irving's Lunch Counter to grab a quick bite to eat. Here, I was able to share with a few of the locals.
As I continued south into the town of Solon, I arrive at a convenient store right next door to the Solon Congregational Church. It's Sunday afternoon and the church has a sign out in front that announces a 2 pm piano concert. I couldn't help but notice that I'm about 20 minutes early for it. So, knowing that God has some pretty good timing, I head into the convenient store to find me some of that miracle salve I've been hearing so much about, Lewey's Insect Repellent. Apparently, it's the 'bug juice' of choice of all of the local loggers up here and it's extremely eco-friendly without all of that much frowned upon deet. At this point, ANYTHING's better than what I've got, which is nothing, so we'll see how this works out.
At 2 o'clock, I walk into the church next door to enjoy the concert and happily find that it comes complete with refreshments as well. Bonus!
After the recital, I had the opportunity to talk to a lot of the people along with the preacher and his family. They recommended to me a campground down the road. So, I went for it.
On my way to it, I couldn't help but notice a a severe lack in the town of Solon. With a name like that, how could they not have a 'Solon Hair Salon' or even a 'Solon Saloon'. What a disappointing oversight. If only people would learn to call me about these things. ;)
I also noticed more of the same sad theme found throughout these northeastern states... abandoned factories and plants. In many of the towns I'm walking through, it's easy to see the evidence of once thriving businesses and industry of yesteryear. Unfortunately, that's all that they are these days, just distant memories of a prosperous past. Bummer.
So, I finally get to the Evergreens Campground and check in. They assign me tent site 'H'. I wasn't able to get very far talking with the owners, though. They didn't really seem to care one way or the other about who I was, what I was doing or even what I had to say. I couldn't see any evidence as to what their belief system was, if they had any, but they certainly weren't open to anything I was bringing to the table. Oh well.
I did enjoy the campsite, though. I took the time to wander around and reminisce about my childhood experiences back at Lake Texoma. I can remember tagging along with my grandparents and their Methodist Church group as they would make a yearly rendezvous up to the lake for some fun and fellowship. (I'm from the Dallas, Texas area.)
The setup here in Solon gives me that same feel with the beach running alongside the back of the sites. There's plenty of room for the pop-up campers, the RVs, the tents and the campfire pits for those ever important gatherings of song, stories and, of course, S'mores. Those were really good times. And, now here I am all of these years later and so many miles removed, doing something I never would've even imagined back in those days.
Life is strange like that. If only we would appreciate those moments in life a little more while we're actually in the middle of them. Because, once they're gone, they're gone. There's no going back. The only moments we have are the ones we're currently in. The past is always there for us to cherish, but let's not forget to make the most out of the present. Because, it's the present that determines what happens to our future.
I think it's time for bed.