The most exciting part of my work, some might call it glamorous, is exploring and writing about far away places, exotic cultures and experiences that some might call adventures. But a real pleasure for me is finding a great story and exciting destination in my own back yard.
That was the case in January when I had the opportunity to return to Cape Girardeau, Missouri – not exactly my birthplace, but certainly where I spent a lot of time as a child. It was when I started college at Southeast Missouri State that I really came to love Cape. (I would insert some stories of my college experiences here, but since my parents read this blog, perhaps those stories would be left to the imagination of those who “enjoyed” college as I did).
My first professional jobs were in radio and television Cape Girardeau, and of course, that showed me the little community in an entirely different perspective.
But going back to my roots 30 years later was not the experience that Thomas Wolfe had when he wrote his infamously quoted novel “You Can’t Go Home Again.” I fell in love with Cape again, with the majesty of the Mississippi River there, the history of Lewis & Clark, the Trail of Tears, of Mark Twain.
The results of my visit fill pages 56-59 in the June issue of The Crafts Report. And by golly, if you flip on to the next page, you’ll see a story about a craft artisan from North Dakota who taught Martha Stewart a thing or two.
I’ve had a relationship with the editors at The Crafts Report for nearly 20 years, which is longer than many friendships, marriages and prison sentences.
Like Martha, I got to go home again, but my visit didn’t require an ankle bracelet.
