Before that, in the early stages of that mid-life crisis, we spent a couple years traveling around Ohio on weekends, selling stuff at arts and crafts shows. It was an attempt at filling a void, finding a solution to the nagging dissatisfaction which plagued us. That too has nothing to do with wildflowers, but I'm getting closer.
Those arts and crafts festivals took us south, to Adams County, on the Ohio River. Each spring we set up our booth at the Redbud Festival, and each autumn we set up our booth at the Lewis Mt. Herb Festival. We met many wonderful folks there, in the poor rural area. We were led deeper into nature by prairie enthusiasts, butterfly chasers and star gazers. We fell in love with the place, and how could we not, what with all the great folks and great nature? And the wildflowers are just around the corner.
Slowly succumbing to the pressures of mid-life misery, not finding salvation in arts and crafts festivals, the seed of innkeeping not yet sprouting, we turned our weary spirits toward Adams County. There, we dared dream, we might find what we lacked, which was plenty, lemme tell ya. So we bought some land; 13 acres. Which brings us to the wildflowers.
Our land consisted of a dilapidated old cabin on a couple of acres of open land surrounded by woods near the foothills of the Appalachians. It was quiet. It was covered with stars at night. It was full of songbirds and butterflies. The woods were full of spring wildflowers and morel mushrooms. And the open land was a wildflower meadow.
Being a poor rural area, Adams County was wonderfully undeveloped. Among all the nature there were several prairie remnants, and throughout the county many prairie species flourished. Our open bit of land was a prime example, a paradise of wildflowers, particularly those prairie species and, as a consequence, a variety and abundance of butterflies.
My wife and I spent many weekends there primitive camping, writing in our journals, reading, talking in hushed reverential tones, watching the constant flow of nature before us. There were so many butterflies, so many stars, and so, so many wildflowers. It was paradise, an example of what the earth can do when folks leave it alone.
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