Massive wildfires kept us away from Yosemite National Park two years ago. We made it into the park last summer while the Park Service conducted a controlled burn. Hopefully, burn helped with the situation this year as the wildfires have returned once more.
Our prayers go out to the brave firefighters working to save the sequoias. Words fail me when I attempt to describe the beauty of this place.
Glancing across the landscape of America, one can’t help but note the problems. Inflation, crime, political polarization and immigration issues are just a few that come to mind. It’s easy to throw up our hands and mumble “it is what it is” to deal with the problems before us. Nevertheless, America is still a very bright and alluring star, as evidenced by the thousands willing to risk their lives on a dangerous journey, filled with the hope of a better life on this side of a very porous border.
Americans don’t quit on their problems, and I remain confident that we’ll work through this set while tackling others as they emerge. We are a nation of great people, founded on a quest for freedom and governed by laws written by some brilliant men. For the most part, those laws have stood the test of time.
The Fourth of July is set aside as the day when a nation founded on the principles of freedom celebrates those freedoms, including the right to speak our mind, elect our leaders, and move about our country at will. Also on the list is the freedom to (or not to) worship…a guiding principle for the founding of America. Let it never be forgotten that Americans died defending those freedoms.
America is overwhelmingly blessed with abundant natural resources and staggering beauty as a nation. In 1918, Irving Berlin, with his family, immigrated to America fleeing anti-Semitic persecution in Russia, and wrote a song asking the Almighty for those blessings to continue. Twenty years later, a young Kate Smith began performing the music, making it a staple on American radio.
I think of “God Bless America” as a hymn celebrating the divine creation and the majesty of America and love hearing it played on the Fourth of July. Several years ago, I used some of the pictures from our early trips across the country and put together a short video to illustrate Berlin’s words. I thought this weekend would be an excellent time to bring it out.
Happy 246th birthday to our great, treasured nation that is still the world’s hope. May God bless America.
To enlarge to full screen, click the button in the lower right corner of the video
Joseph C. Bruner
LTC U.S. Army (Ret)
Easin’ Along readers know that Helen is undergoing chemotherapy treatment after surgery for early-stage breast cancer. She has received five weekly treatments and has seven more scheduled. All have gone well, with little to no impact on our lives except for a reduced travel schedule in our RV.
Unlike in the past, when we have left Knoxville for weeks or months at a time, we plan to take shorter trips of three or four days between the weekly treatments until Helen completes the chemotherapy regimen. Her second round of targeted treatments will be administered every three weeks, allowing us more freedom. Additionally, Helen can receive those treatments in any facility in the country with her doctor’s approval, opening many more opportunities for us.
Last month we made our way to our favorite campground in North Carolina for a few days. We had a wonderful time and felt comfortable with travel to take on a more distant visit to our son, Collin, and his family in Charleston, SC. Join us as we set up shop in Camp Charleston.
Collin and his wife, Austin, have a home on a lovely property with a view of Charleston Bay and the architecturally unique Ravenel Bridge. About a year ago, Collin had some electrical work completed on his home and asked if we wanted to share the cost of installing a 50 amp outlet outside his garage door, allowing us to park Dora (fifth-wheel) in his driveway. We immediately responded in the affirmative. Now, we take the mother-in-law’s suite with us when we visit our precious grandchildren. It works out great, and Collin and Austin are fabulous hosts.
This past Saturday, we loaded up Dora in the space next to our home and then took off on the eight-hour trip to Charleston. We can usually make the drive in under seven hours, but this being a holiday weekend as well as Father’s Day, traffic was HEAVY, and we encountered many roadblocks and stalls. Eventually, we arrived, and the hugs from Bennett and Cason, our granddaughters, plus a dip in the camp swimming pool helped us overcome the frustrating travel experience. By the time hamburgers came off the grill, I wasn’t mad at anybody.
Camp Charleston comes complete with a boat, and we made plans for a river excursion on Sunday. Collin towed the boat to the Riverland Terrace Landing on the Wappoo Cut. We spent the next several hours cruising the Stono River, passing both James and John’s Island to the mouth of the Atlantic Ocean between Folly Beach and Kiawah Island. The sky was clear and blue, and the day was hot. The spray from the wake created by the boat was very refreshing.
Our oldest granddaughter, Bennett, left early the following day for basketball camp, and Collin attended to work. Helen, Austin, Cason, and I spent the afternoon in the pool eagerly anticipating the evening meal—grilled pizzas prepared on Collin’s Big Green Egg and a pizza stone. Camp Charleston was getting better by the day.
I had often wanted to try making pizza on the grill but never got around to it. Collin found a place to purchase uncooked pizza dough and assembled enough ingredients for various pies. He worked for a pizza restaurant in college and mastered the art of throwing a spinning glob of dough in the air until it reached the perfect thickness for grilling, proving you can learn a lot in college. I have shown a few varieties below. Helen’s favorite was a crust heated momentarily, then brushed with olive oil. Caramelized onions and blue cheese completed the toppings before returning the pizza to the grill. It was divine. Food at summer camp has come a long way since the days of powdered eggs and greasy corn beef hash.
No summer camp is complete without a day trip, and Austin had one planned for us that was both educational and fun. Austin, an attorney, is the general counsel for the Charleston Airport and arranged to give us a tour of the offices and some of the runway viewpoints. She had recently moved into a new office with a killer view, and Cason had not had the opportunity to visit before now. The three of us had a grand time learning about the inner workings of a facility growing rapidly as Charleston undergoes a population explosion. Cason was delighted to see her Mom’s new digs. As an added treat, we visited with Austin’s friend and co-worker, Caroline, director of public relations for the Airport. Caroline was clearing her office of promotional items, so we timed our visit perfectly to walk away with a slew of t-shirts, travel mugs, towels, and the like. Thank you, Caroline, and thank you Austin for the outing!
For our final night at Camp Charleston, we drove to the James Island Yacht Club to view the sunset. I’ll let the pictures (and the selfie) speak for the evening.
Camp Charleston…good for the young, and great for the young at heart.
We’re Easin’ Along.
