The Good Ol' Family Staycation - Time Out #252

The individual human experience of the Covid-19 pandemic is as varied as the people on Planet Earth.

Everyone has been affected in his/her own way. As we progress well into our summer season, possibly your thoughts are turning to freeing yourselves from being "hunkered down" for a few days. These "getting away' ideas could involve some short travel jaunts. During this weekly installment, I will retrace 3 of my "not too far away" travel experiences I enjoyed long, long ago, during simpler/gentler times.

The first spot is tiny Noel, MO, only a 175-mile (3-hour) leisurely drive from Our Town. Noel, population 1,832, is affectionately called "The Christmas City in the Ozark Vacation Land". Several times during my youth, my wonderful father, Col. C.H. Breedlove, would drive the family car to Noel, and our group would stay in various mom-and-pop motels near the center of town. The small community is located right on the beautiful Elk River in the far southwest corner of the state, very close to the booming northwest corner of adjacent Arkansas. I remember enjoying my sister/her husband, and my nephew and niece, as we all played in the clear and cool river during several hot summers. We would occasionally eat in one of the town restaurants, but mostly we were able to enjoy keeping necessary food/drink inside our motel units. I also recall walking a short distance to their town's main street, and shopping in their various curio and clothing shops. A few miles north of town via US 59, we would drive to the Ginger Blue Inn (constructed 1915) to dine in the nice, upscale establishment. In fact, it is still there, also directly located on the lovely Elk River.

Two other "not far" destinations our family visited with regularity for short periods, were my both my grandparents' homes. My mother's folks lived in Lawton, and my father's people called Ardmore home. Both cities provided a nice get-aways from Our Town, but not too far for me to constantly ask, "How much farther, Dad?" Does that question sound familiar to any parents?

Lawton was/is much larger than Our Town. My Grandmother Smith and her sister, my Aunt Gracie, lived downtown on E Street in a VERY old home. As I grew up, visiting there and staying overnight, I got very familiar with the neighborhood, including their large, unfenced backyard. I used to love picking a ripe pear off the old tree there, and biting into the delicious fruit. My Uncle Paul/Aunt Carol lived nearby, too, and we would go to their home to visit, and play with their cute Boston Terrier dogs. Paul's older brother, Uncle Dale/Aunt Thelma lived close by to the south in the Cotton County town of Walters. Dale owned a service station, and a butane/propane fuel delivery service. He also had a small airplane, and used to land it in his cattle field, west of Walters. Frequently, when we were flying, in order to land his aircraft, he would fly extra low, to scare his cattle away from his landing zone. I would also have regular entertainment by visiting Paul's two stores in downtown Lawton. One establishment was a liquor store, and next door, he owned a pawn shop. Because of my age, I couldn't go in the liquor store, but watching the many army soldiers from Ft. Sill come in the pawn shop, was quite an education (?) for me. Both stores were especially busy on army pay days.

Speaking of Ft. Sill, because my father was active/then retired military, we visited the huge north side military base many times. I enjoyed swimming in the large outdoor pool, going to the post exchange, riding through the nearby Wichita Mountains Wildlife Refuge, the beautiful drive/scenery up Mt. Scott, and walking through the colorful rural community of Medicine Park.

Carter County's Ardmore in the southern part of Our State had it's own charm for me. My Grandmother Lillie Breedlove and Aunt Klyde lived together in a quaint little stone home on the north side of McLish Avenue. Our frequent visits there were also full of great memories. My grandmother was born shortly after the Civil War was over, and lived to be a centurion. Her memory was keen almost until the very end of her life. The stories she told me--absolutely priceless! When we would make the drive to visit them, often we would spend some time in the Turner Falls area, and cool off in adjacent cool Honey Creek. Since my father was born in Ardmore, IT (Indian Territory, before Oklahoma gained statehood in 1907), he had friends everywhere in/around the city. Famous rancher/cowboy, Hardy Murphy, was a dear friend, and I remember visiting his home/family several times.

Of course, we visited many other locations across Our State as I grew up, but these short drives I have described might just encourage you to strike out on a short, adventurous, road trip sometime before this summer is over. Therefore. "Happy trails to you!"