Land of the Free

Listen my children and you shall hear
Of the midnight ride of Paul Revere,
On the eighteenth of April, in Seventy-five;
Hardly a man is now alive
Who remembers that famous day and year.
(Henry Wadsworth Longfellow)

Here is one of Paul Revere's destinations on that famous night--Josiah Clark's house in Lexington where Samual Adams and John Hancock were meeting.

Below is North Bridge near Concord, MA


By the rude bridge that arched the flood.
Their flag to April's breeze unfurled,
Here once the embattled farmers stood
And fired the shot heard round the world.
(Ralph Waldo Emerson)

I know--I'm such a dork! It just humbles me when I visit the places where our independence as a nation was won. We read the stories but seeing the actual places and the graves of those patriots who fought for our freedom just astounds me!

I guess that is one of the many things I love about Massachusetts. I also love the fact that this place was home to so many free thinkers. Concord was home to the Alcotts, Longfellow, Emerson, Hawthore and Thoreau. This was where American Transcendentalism was born! How can one not respect that!

DH and I took a lovely drive through some of the quaint coastal towns north of Boston. Here are a couple of shots from Old Marblehead, one of which shows part of the Old Burying Ground.



I don't know what it is about old cemeteries that fascinates me. All of these little towns in Massachusetts have cemeteries which are usually called the "Old Burying Ground" located in the center of the town. All of them have stones dating back to the early 1700's with some going back into the 1600's. I love the old slate stones with the various symbols.

I could easily just stay in New England. I feel like I must have lived there in a previous lifetime. It just feels right to me. I think DH might entertain the possibility of moving there upon retirement. Who knows!

We drove home on Monday and the kitties have been very clingy. It took a day for me to recover yesterday so I just hung out and relaxed.

Knitting group tonight -- which was fun. I'm almost done my One Skein Wonder, then it's back to Fifi. I have to spend the next week making my gown for the 11th.

After spending a week in the birthplace of our nation, my Bushisms of the day seem so much more poignant!

"If you're sick and tired of the politics of cynicism and polls and principles, come and join this campaign." --George W. Bush, Hilton Head, S.C., Feb. 16, 2000

Kitty Cam:

Mikey is happy to have mommy home to rub his tummy!