Around 70 years ago I was in Girl Scouts.  Our troop was the coveted troop because of our leader...Marty Marsh. We had another leader before she took over, but our first leader, while a nice person, was not very conscientious about being sure we eared our badges. 

When Marty took over and started quizzing us about our badges she realized we had told our former leader we had "earned" them when indeed we had not.  Immediately Marty cracked down on us.  We could not wear our badge sashes until we eared every single badge on there.

My favorite badge is the hiking badge.  You can see it in the picture.  It's the one with the little footprints on it.  In order to earn that badge we had to hike 100 miles.  We didn't have to hike it all at once, but it had to add up to 100.  

So, as soon as school was out for the summer, Marty planned our hikes.  Her Mother was also a scout leader, so she often went with us. 

What a summer we had!  We hiked all over the Smoky Mountains, and had so many wonderful adventures!  One day, Marty's Mother said, "ok girls...today we are going to plow the brush."  With that warning echoing in our brains, Mrs. Frisbie took off up the side of the mountain, off the beaten path!  We spent the next few hours literally plowing the brush.  We went under laurel bushes, over fallen trees, into the midst of thorn bushes...all the while begging her to get us back onto the trail.  She wouldn't have it though, so we plowed all the way to the top of Mt. LeConte!  What an experience!

That summer was a glorious summer for me.  At one point, Marty decided we would all camp in the wilderness for a week.  We even built our own leantos and hogans to sleep in.  We buried food in the ground to keep it cool and we camped and cooked over an open fire.  Some of the troop became disillusioned after about 2 days of this and wanted to go home.  Marty said we would put it to a vote and if anyone voted against it, even if it was just one person, we would stay. 

My best friend Polly and I voted to stay.  We were the only ones, but we stayed!  

Am I glad that Marty made me actually earn the badges that I was proudly wearing on my sash?  You better believe it!

​This is the time of year when I Iike to open my windows and feel the air blow through the house.  

The last place we lived didn't have screens on any of the windows, so I never got to do that.

When I opened the windows, I saw something I hadn't seen all summer.  The windows and the sills were very dirty! 

So, Tommy and I jumped in and started cleaning!

It's amazing how much prettier the world is when seen out of clean windows!

If your world has grown dim, maybe you just need to clean your windows. Who knows what beauty is out there for you to see!!!

​It seems that in our married life we have spent more time "on the road" than we have at home.  I know that isn't true, but it just seems that way sometimes.

It also seems as if we have more to pack up than the average person who is on the road.  In fact, we were talking this past week that we are our own "roadies"!  

We were in Georgia this past week, and as we were packing up I made the statement that I didn't mind packing up to go home as much as I hated packing up to leave.  

Of course it's obvious why that is so.  Every time I start packing to leave, I am sure I will forget something and think about it when we are halfway to our destination!  I start making lists long before we have to leave.  I start little piles in different places that will be out of the way and we don't stumble on them before we start loading

When I pack up to come home, I start organizing it  about 2 days before.  As I pack up something I sit it by the door to load into the car.  It is very satisfying to me to see the pile grow.  When we get it into the car, and I sweep through to make sure we got everything, I can't tell you how good it makes me feel.

I'm going home!  What a great word....HOME.

I hate packing to leave, but love packing to go home.  Of course, then I have to face putting everything away once we get home!  THAT isn't so much fun!  But, the three of us jump in and it is usually done in record time.

While writing this, the thought came to me, that when I  go home to my final home, there will be no packing, nor will there be any unpacking!  What a day THAT will be!

​Our friend (and adopted son) Greg, came to spend the night with us a couple of nights ago.  He is one of those people who come to visit, whom you wish would never leave.  We don't see each other a lot, but we were in Georgia for a week and Greg lives about 2 hours from where we were staying. 

John thomas was recording an album for a friend, so we rented an Air B&B for the week.  We couldn't be that close and not see each other!

In the course of the short time he was with us, the four of us had lots of catching up to do and lots of good conversation.  One thing that Greg told has stuck with me, so I want to share it with you.

He said when he was in graduate school, he went to class one day thinking he had another day for a big exam that was coming up.  When he got there he found out it was that day.  He panicked.  A friend told him to just say he was sick and ask if he could take it another day. 

He turned around and left thinking that that was exactly what he would do.  He hadn't even read everything he was supposed to read before the test!

As he walked away, he started feeling really bad, so he turned around and went back to take the test.

When he walked in, he saw the TA sitting in the room.  He had heard the whole conversation and Greg hadn't even seen him sitting there!  The TA told him to go talk to the professor, so he did.

The professor told him to go ahead and take the test and just see what happened.

Greg scored the highest score in the class.

I love that story.  Not that Greg made the highest grade, but that he made one tiny little decision that made a huge difference.  Actually he made two little decisions.  First he decided to leave and lie about why he left.  Then he decided to go back and face the music.

It's like the old poem about 2 roads diverging in a yellow wood and the poet took the one less traveled and that made all the difference.

Greg took the one less traveled.  I would like to believe that everyone would have made the decision to go back, but I have seen enough people make bad decisions, that I just don't think that is true.

I have a friend I have written about before (Jami from W VA) who is constantly telling her kids and nieces and nephews and any other kid who is within listening distance, to "make good choices."  

Sometimes I think it is all the little choices we make in life that makes all the difference...like the road in the yellow wood.