There’s No Place Like Home – even if it is Kansas

Last summer about this time, Bruce and I were exploring the nooks and crannies of Barcelona after a lovely 12 day Holland America cruise through the Mediterranean, celebrating our 25th wedding anniversary.

  All told, we were in Europe about three weeks, visiting friends in Germany, climbing the caldera steps in Santorini, Greece and falling in love with our brief visit to Cinque Terre Italy.

   Since then, we’ve been to Egypt and Costa Rica together.  I’ve been to the Turks & Caicos, Vitoria Spain, and two dozen or more domestic destinations.

Howler monkies in Costa Rica

   So it becomes really unsettling when our friends and neighbors ask “Where are you going next?”

  In the last month, I’ve traveled to Beatrice Nebraska, Vermillion South Dakota and El Dorado Kansas, all on assignments.  Oh, and I can’t forget Marceline, Missouri, Walt Disney’s boyhood home.

   Not every assignment is to the exotic, but there are stories to find and experiences to enjoy in every destination.  That’s our responsibility to uncover the smallest treasures and recognize the untold stories of every place we visit, even if it’s our own backyard. 

   And when I was in Nebraska, I talked with a couple visiting from Germany, so they thought they were somewhere exciting and exotic.  It’s all a matter of perspective. 

  The mantra of Nancy Bray, one of my undergraduate feature writing instructors, was “Every person and every place has a story.  It’s your job to find it and tell it.”

   Of course, that’s easier said than done when it’s a105 degrees and you’re being eaten alive by bugs in a Kansas state park.

I did enjoy some extensive exploration of Arkansas back in May, and today. I have a little story in the Dallas Morning News about one of those little treasures. 

Razorback submarine in Little Rock

   There’ll be more to come from Arkansas, South Dakota, Nebraska and Kansas.  And I am enjoying some quiet time at home this summer, taking care of issues that have been neglected too long.

   But I must admit that my passport is feeling a little neglected in the desk drawer, and it’s been so long since I boarded a plane that the frustrations of air travel don’t feel so traumatic.

  By the time the weather begins to cool again, it’ll be time to spin the globe and see what stories there are to uncover in places a world away from Kansas City.