03/05/2026
Enjoy this wonderfully serendipitous and unexpected article about Nick 💕:
I went for a random drive without a plan on a Wednesday afternoon. This time, it took me to the parking area of Lenoir City Park overlooking Fort Loudon Dam. I stopped, enjoying the lake and mountains scene from the car.
A young man with his guitar came walking by. He rummaged in the cab of his pickup for a few minutes, then settled on the tailgate. When he started playing, I rolled the window down to listen. He seemed at peace. I shot a couple of images to see if the afternoon sunlight on him was as good as I thought.
The base of a nearby tree kept inviting me. From there the view would mimic looking up at him on a stage. Finally, I went over to ask if I could take a few pictures. We talked some more.
His t-shirt had a logo for IN-N-OUT Burger, Colorado. I asked if he had been to Colorado. He said, “yes,” then went on to say he has been in all fifty states. There are unexpected connections in the story. His family, with four siblings, wanted to move from California (over a decade ago) to a different part of the country. They bought a recreation vehicle and traveled until they settled in Tennessee.
The pictures took on a whole new meaning for me. Nick’s experience was a much longer version of my three childhood road trips in 1957, 1958 and 1960. I’ve written nine thousand words about those vacations in an unpublished manuscript titled A NEW TRUE TO ME: The Foundation for How I Got Here.
The manuscript also describes my family of pioneers who moved across the Appalachian Mountains before Tennessee was a state (ca. 1792). Apparently, they were also looking for a different place to live. I wonder about their story.
It feels like Nick and I share something significant in our lives, a line of explorers. Maybe we will meet again someday.
Sometimes God gives me an opportunity to capture a small fraction of his wonders. If I do my part, I can share them with others.
