Leaving Peace River, Wauchula

Our two weeks at Peace River just flew by. A couple day trips to handle some unfinished business, a couple days to finish washing and waxing the full coach, a couple days (and long nights) trying to learn new computer skills with the "Geeks on Tour", entertaining friends who drove up to see what camping is all about, lots of time meeting and chatting with new neighbors- all contributed to the almost unnoticed passing of time.

That's pretty much what happens to our lives anyway: time gets away and the only way we really ever see that is by looking back. I'm hoping to do some of that on this trip, but I hope to learn to look more at the here and now before it too becomes the past and is gone.

We try to learn from everyone we meet on the road. The couple in the Fifth Wheel parked across the gravel road from us hang a sign on their hitch that reads, "If you don't stop by and say 'HEY' we may never get to be friends." That pretty much sums up attitudes in campgrounds. Welcoming! If there are any campgrounds out here filled with leave-me-alone grumpy types we haven't stopped at any of them yet- and suspect we will not.

There are lots of activities one can pursue on the road. We hope that in the not too distant future we can do some panning for gold. Marilyn has her pan and her hat and her GPAA (Gold Prospertors of America Assn) badge ready to sew on to her jacket first chance she gets! That's still in the future. But if striking up a conversation with a new neighbor is the "panning for gold" of friendship, then Peace River was a gold mine for us. We met some new friends and spent a couple evenings sitting around the old camp fire getting to know each other. Some people you just click with...and while we will surely miss them when we pull out of here in the morning, there is no doubt that we will all hook up again a tad further down the road. As Chris said tonight, what she likes about this life style is that when people meet and start talking in a campground, they are talking about a restaurant in Phoenix, a mountain in Washington, a fishing trip to Wyoming, a great camp on the Chesapeake- the country is our neighborhood. We are not defined by cities and states or even regions- and how cool is that?

So to celebrate a new friendship and our last night together for now, Bob and Polly put on a camp feed for Marilyn and me and Jim and Chris. On the menu, Marguaritas and cerveza with chips and homemade, handmade salsa, cheesebugers in paradise, baked beans, green salad and FUDGE for dessert. Perfecto!

We laughed and partied and made loud raucus sounds late into the night until there was nothing left of the fire but the embers and the cows had all come home...actually it was a propane fire pit, we wrapped things up by 7:00 PM (hey I'm not as young as I used to be) and I was just kidding about the cows!

Earlier in the evening I had taken a last stroll by myself down the nature trail that is cut along the river. It is quiet there. You can think about the day. You can see things there that you cannot see back where everyone else is...the Peace River is really only a stream this far "up stream," and it's low and slow and, well, Peace-ful.

I saw a tortoise come out of the high grass to munch on some tender young vines.

The Spanish moss was draped in the trees that leaned out over the river and it shivered in the light breezes of the evening.Water flowed around the bends in the river determined to flow to the Gulf and become another body of water entirely.

A thousand faces seemingly tried to peer from the bark of the ancient living oaks as though they were telling the story of this place.

But after the walk through the woods and by the river the hustle and bustle of the camp was still in evidence.

There is a road that takes you to people you have not met and and places you did not know existed. We are on that road....