As we travel to new places I think about the times family came to visit us in Montana. Montana is, so far, my favorite place I’ve been. It is beautiful. I love the different seasons. I love the people. I love hiking and camping. So when family comes to visit I feel bad when they don’t get to see how wonderful Montana is. Once they came and it was freezing. Way too cold to go outside and enjoy the area. Another time it rained and was gloomy the entire visit. Their view of Montana was only a short moment in time. A week after their visit the weather changed. It was nice again. They didn’t have a chance to see that or experience all that Montana has to offer. Now that I am traveling to new places I know that I am only seeing a small glimpse of an area.
New Mexico has the most beautiful sunsets. It’s possible that it doesn’t always, but when I was there they were amazing. Every night was clear and warm and the entire sky was filled with color.
Texas has ants. People say everything is bigger in Texas. I would disagree. The ants are smaller. The ants are tiny. The anthills aren’t even that big, but they are plentiful. Having a toddler around all these ants isn’t very safe. He was walking through the grass and tripped over a mound of dirt. Instantly they swarmed him and started biting. His hands and feet were covered in small red bumps that turned into white blisters. A week later they were healing and turned into little scabs. We were outside getting ready for a bike ride. He was standing at my feet as I was getting my bike ready. He started yelling for what seemed like no reason. I was right there with him, I saw that nothing had happened…why was he upset? Then I noticed the ants. They bit his feet and ankles again. I had to quickly pull his shoes and pants off him and brush them off. All that could be seen of the anthill was a patch of dirt about three inches wide. The ants are small, like sugar ants, but they are vicious.
Louisiana is wet. There is water everywhere. It is quite a change from the deserts we had been in traveling through California, Arizona and New Mexico. The cacti are gone. The dryness is gone. The warm weather is gone. All that is here is water. The roads are bridges that go on for miles. The hiking trails are wooden walkways above water. It is wet. Then the rain came. It poured for hours. Now the roads are covered in water. The playground and grassy areas at our campground are a few inches deep with water. When we walk out our front door we step into a few inches of water. Louisiana is wet.
I know that there is more to these states than sunsets, ants, and water but in the short time we were there, and in the areas we went, this is what stood out the most.
