Visiting Mayberry

Sunday, being Easter and all, Shelby and I rode with Dustin's cousin to Cotton Port to meet their family. He and Paige's grandmothers are sisters, making them second cousins. I think. Genetics are funny, because I never thought Dustin looked much like anyone in his family other than maybe his mom. But he really looks like the people I met yesterday, and Shelby resembles them, too. Many look like they could be his brothers and sisters.

After a three hour drive (which felt a lot longer coming back than going), and stopping on the side of the road to buy strawberries, we arrived to a full house of open arms and warm welcomes. And, of course, good food. There was a box full of baby bunnies for the kids to play with, swings to swing on and eggs to hunt, so needless to say Shelby had a good time with her "new" cousins, only one of which she'd met before. I had a lovely visit with the adults and was treated to a few albums of family photos and amusing stories to go with each sepia or black-and-white photograph. I also got to hold the new baby that had been baptised that day, smelling of anointing oil and baby soap.

After re-tasting a few things and finally peeling the kids off of each other, we headed home. The backseat was full of noise and dirty little feet, but they had all fallen asleep before we made it back to New Orleans. Having caught a few glances of the plantation homes hiding behind trees and moss earlier, I made an effort to watch the countryside more on the return trip. The landscape was gorgeous. If I hadn't become so accustom to the convenience of living in a city, my next choice would be to live in places like the ones we drove through. Rolling hills, farmland, streams and lakes, flowers and towering trees, grazing cows and horses. And of course, those awe-inspiring antebellum homes. I tell you, if I was a millionaire.... I just can't get over them.

While I loved getting to see a different side of Louisiana, I'm glad that we live where we do. It's so interesting and exciting, though, that whole other worlds of history and architecture exist just beyond our city limits. Maybe a few more excursions are on the itinerary for this Summer.