Days 200-201 – 12/10-11/11 – Community Kindness Prevails

Levasy to Waverly; Distance = 36 Miles; People Met = 14+

Photos at the end

Since we’ve entered Missouri the weather has not been bad in terms of precipitation or wind.  Below average temperatures and overcast skies still give the feel of winter approaching.  Adding to this wintry feel are the leaves off the trees and barren crop land.  We finally got to see the Missouri River on this stretch, but even that creates a desolate impression due to the flooding and broken trees that occurred this past year.

Yet the kindness along the way sustains us.  We entered the town of Wellington (after the town of Napoleon and Waterloo mind you) in need of a restroom.  Brian Beissenherz was unloading supplies from his truck into a store when he stopped to ask if we needed anything.  He proceeded to drop what he was doing to escort us personally to Nana Marie’s Diner a little farther up the street.  He wanted to know if we needed a shower or anything else but we told him a restroom would serve us just fine.

At the diner we asked the proprietors, Charlotte Uptegrove and daughter Bobbi, if we could use their restroom, then purchase drinks while we ate our own snacks.  Well, they didn’t go for that.  They let us use their restroom, of course, but they could not let us “leave hungry” and prepared a couple of chicken sandwiches for us.

As we waited we observed the black and white televisions playing old movies and the albums from the sixties and seventies plastered all over the walls.  There was a jukebox, though I don’t know if it worked or not.  The décor was as wonderful as the proprietors.

Charlotte shared with us that a destructive wind storm swept through Wellington and people banded together to clean up the town in a couple days.  Her reporting of community kindness had a familiar ring.  People from across the country think that they are fortunate to live in a region where community kindness still prevails.  Yet if people everywhere feel this way perhaps the special ingredient is not where we are but our selves under the right kind of conditions.

I should add that not everyone is taken by the community kindness surrounding them.  Mike and Mary Beth hosted us for breakfast on the second morning of this stretch, an invitation made back at the Buckner library where Mary Beth works.  They described some situations where neighbors took contentious and even ugly sides in their town of Lexington.

Lexington is larger than Wellington, and has historical significance as a battle ground in the Civil War.  They preserve the cannon ball lodged in one building on Main Street.  Many large brick houses exist from before that time.  Yet the town is shrinking and some of the houses are in disrepair.

As we hiked out of Lexington a couple pulled over in their minivan to ask what we were doing.  They were in a hurry and were parked on the wrong side of the road to talk to us so we could not chat for long.  They asked if we were a father/daughter team.  Geesh!  First “old man and young blonde,” then “father and daughter,” by the end of the hike people will be asking me if I’m hiking with my granddaughter.  I gave them my card as they wanted to contact me later that day by cell phone.  Unfortunately, it occurred to me later my cell number is not on the card.

They would have invited us to stay at their house, as would have Mary Beth and Mike.  That makes three homes in Lexington wanting to open their homes to us.  We had the pleasure of staying with the Arnoldi household for two nights, a connection made back at the White Memorial Camp in Council Grove, Kansas.

We broke bread the first evening with the patriarch Bob, daughter Hannah, son-in-law Dannon, 16 month old granddaughter Anjulie, and “adopted” daughter Michelle.  Matriarch Sharon, our original connection, and other daughter Kathryn were at a horse show during our stay.

In addition to people there were six dogs of varying personalities and two cats that were allowed indoors.  All in all quite a busy place!  They were quite a warm and loving household as well.  You could tell that by virtue of the “adopted” Michelle spending so much time there.  In fact, she usually comes over and cooks for them.  The arrangement has a family feel towards it, but in essence they have a bartered situation that works to the mutual benefit of both.  Communities need to resort to that kind of community economics.

Brian Beissenherz of Wellington

Charlotte and daughter Bobbi of Nana Marie's Diner

Breakfast with Mary Beth and Mike

The Arnoldi household: l to r Cindy, Dannon, Bob, Michelle and Hannah

They have a sense of humor in Levasy

This was tempting

Should we go straight or straight?

There's a lot of finger pointing in Missouri