Last week, we took a family vacation to South Dakota. The drive was super long, about 16 hours, but we made some stops along the way. We stopped at the giant Green Giant in Blue Earth, the Corn Palace, the beautiful Dignity statue, and Wall Drug Store.
But my favorite part was spending quality time with my family and seeing all the open land—not seeing the city jungle and trash. The fields were full of corn, open prairies, and sunflowers, with flatlands and mountains in the distance.
We were going 80 mph on the highway. Yes, I said it—80! That was the speed limit. I was shocked, considering I drive about 65 all the time. LOL.
The drive was nice, but it was anything but quiet. My two boys did what kids do, going back and forth about being in each other’s space and complaining that it was hot. Once they got things situated, they were at peace—well, for about two minutes. LOL.
When we arrived in South Dakota, we saw some beautiful sights, from buffalo, goats, donkeys, prairie dogs, and an American marten in the Black Hills. But we didn’t find gold.
We also got a chance to see Mount Rushmore. My boys loved it, and it was the first time any of us had ever seen it. But our visit there was cut short due to rain.
The crazy thing is, when it was raining, it looked like the presidents were crying. My son asked me, “Why are they crying?” I told him, “It’s because they don’t like what they see in the world. They wish things could be different, but they’re not around anymore to change it. So they’re crying for all the world to see their sorrow.”
We may not have found gold, but spending time with my family is all the gold I need.