Out in the Country...

I had the good fortune this afternoon to take a ride "out in the country" (right outside my house in the little town where I live, basically), and I just happened to have my camera along for the ride. With the terrific weather that rolled in after the thick morning fog, it was very hard for a person to want to remain inside for any period of time. After all, there will be seemingly endless days ahead where we really will have no choice. 


One of the things that jumped up at me on my little sojourn out amongst the corn and beans, was the song "Out in the Country" from 1970 by Three Dog Night. It is one of "those" songs with melody and lyrics that, when played, puts me right back in various spots in time: Kent State University and the Kappa Sigma parties; post-game parties in Bedford Park, Illinois, the summer I played on a semi-pro baseball team--to name a few of the permanently-etched-in-my-mind memories!

“Whenever I need to leave it all behind

Or feel the need to get away

I find a quiet place, far from the human race

Out in the country”

I realized just what a beautiful part of the country this really is. Many people see only flat farmland, but if one really looks--really looks--it's not too hard to spot the beauty of the colors in the fields and trees and sky overhead. I often wonder where some of those lonesome country roads may lead to. Since this Blog is titled All Roads Lead Somewhere, I have a special interest in those roads and lanes that seem--at first--to go nowhere. I've learned that it's fun and rewarding to follow those roads and see exactly where they do lead every now and then. 

And as I write this now, hours after my little country trek, I look out at the rapidly-arriving twilight and the stillness of the countryside out there, and all is quiet and calm.

"Whenever I feel them closing in on me

Or need a bit of room to move

When life becomes too fast, I find relief at last

Out in the country"

(written by Paul Williams and Roger Nichols)

I recommend a little trip "Out in the Country" for everyone. And that's really a road full of good things☺...MLA