close to home

nice day with israel today. we drove out to bushland thru the road that divides hunter & mary's land from stanley marsh's, up to the boy's ranch road. we were going to clayton NM to have lunch. but when we got close to dalhart, we decided that was far enough, so we drove around and ate in a small mexican place. then as we were leaving israel asked directions to the cemetery. i knew that my grandparents were buried there, along with marion - my dad's older brother. they all died before i was born, except marion, who died in a state institution in abilene when i was four. i only vaguely knew he had existed. glenda's mother explained the whole thing to me sometime in my 30s.

we found the cemetery, and walked around for maybe an hour without finding the names. i was surprised it was rather relaxing, and the weather was peaceful today. israel of course spotted them. i heard him call out, but couldn't see him we were so far apart at that point. when i found him, we were surprised to find six graves. the little site itself had a certain decorum, but still inviting - balance, restraint, no ostentation. my great grandparents, emigrés from vincennes france in the 1870s, were also buried there. i thought they were buried in gallup NM, where they lived. another uncle was there that had died in infancy. none of this was too surprising though - my father was completely taciturn with everything about his past.







this was the first fourth i've spent here in quite some time i think. quiet and nice. no pool parties, no beer, no bears, no travel. in fact the whole town is quiet, even I40...