Oh, beautiful for spacious skies for amber waves of grain. For purple mountains majesty above the fruited plains. America! America! God shed His grace on thee…
~ Music & Lyrics by: K. Bates, B. Sainte-Marie, S. Ward ~
A recap of our adventures this summer: We were evacuated from Mt. Shasta, California, due to fires, saw one of my veteran's ex flings, kayaked, and lived through a near-death experience on the Rogue River, enjoyed time with old friends, hung out on the beach in Astoria Oregon, visited my fellow Goonies, and watched Curtis chainsaw a Ford truck stuck on a log.
After spending a wonderful weekend visiting our favorite elementary and boarding school teachers, my veteran Curtis and I readied the RV to leave Spokane, Washington. A mutual friend from boarding school had just moved to Spokane, and we were able to spend a wonderful evening catching up. Sandy* was in absolute agreement that Curtis was a player back then and that she did not blame me for giving him a wide berth until he grew up. She told me a story of how he had found out that her aunt was one of the faculty living on the hill during the first week of school. He said, "Hey Sandy since you are doing laundry at your aunt's house could you do mine?" Sandy said she was so shocked by his boldness that she said yes and did his laundry. After the first time, she got wise and told him to do his own laundry. We all had a good laugh as Curtis reminded us, 'Don't hate the player, hate the game.' It was incredibly relaxing to spend time with people from our youth where Curtis was just Curtis and not a combat-wounded vet. It gave him a sense of normalcy that he had been craving.
Instead of going the shortest way home to Missouri through South Dakota, we decided to drop down through Montana and Wyoming to scope out Yellowstone National Park for next summer's adventure. Getting reservations this summer anywhere has been next to impossible. Between FEMA blocking out campgrounds for fire evacuees and restrictions lifting from COVID-19, people were outside in droves. I love seeing families out together, but seriously, stay home so we can get reservations. I am kidding; get out and breathe fresh air America! We arrived at Yellowstone at 0600 to get in line for a first-come campground in Mammoth. This was the first time either Curtis or myself had been to Yellowstone. Although the lyrics of America The Beautiful were based on the author's view of the Colorado Peaks, I think it is even truer of the beauty of Yellowstone and the Grand Tetons in Montana. We stayed three days in Yellowstone and would have loved to have stayed longer.
After leaving the 'purple mountain majesties' of Montana and North West Wyoming, we experienced the 'amber waves of grain' through the prairies of Nebraska, Iowa, and Missouri. The night before returning home, we stayed at a mom-and-pop campground outside of Aurora, Nebraska. It was a scene straight out of 'Children of the Corn.' We were in bed, nearly asleep when a haggard-looking woman came knocking on my door. She said she did not know where her breaker was in her RV. I admit to reading way too many murder mysteries, but it seemed sketchy to me and even more so when he was gone nearly an hour. I had all sorts of crazy murder scenarios running through my head when Curtis finally got back to the RV. He told me that she was driving home alone because her husband had passed away in his sleep while attending the HOG rally in Sturgis, SD. It turned out that she and her husband had both served 20+ years in the Army. Her husband had been a decorated Desert Storm combat wounded veteran. All thoughts of being kidnapped or murdered in my sleep disappeared when I thought of the heartache of loss she must be experiencing. None of us know when our time to leave this earth will come, but knowing that is different than accepting it when a loved one is lost.
Curtis and I have been blessed to have lived, traveled, and seen 'the fruited plains and alabaster cities gleam.' Every part of America has a story to tell and a beauty of its own. I would never be able to go on these adventures with my veteran if I had to work in an office. The Heroes Thanking Heroes (HTH) program has allowed me to work from home, RV, or even in the truck while traveling between destinations. Curtis's mental and physical health has improved with the freedom to travel and make new happy memories. This would not be possible without the generosity of donors, foundations, and organizations from 'sea to shining sea,' and we give our heartfelt thanks. The Coalition's HTH program saves lives in supporting America's wounded military heroes and their caregivers.
Oh, beautiful for heroes proved in liberating strife, Who more than self their country loved and mercy more than life. America! America! God shed His grace on thee. And crown thy good with brotherhood from sea to shining sea ~ America The Beautiful
Written by: Justina Lyn, Veteran Caregiver
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