We had very congenial and enthusiastic fellow travelers from across the South ranging from "fortysomethings" to octogenarians. Arnold Arboretum is America’s oldest arboretum with amazing collections, and we visited at the height of leaf season. Magnificent trees were abundant here and at Mount Auburn Cemetery which is pictured in the last frame.
After returning home to the “down South", we keep looking up to discover rainbows of color on our trees and are somewhat homesick for New England. Norman Rockwell scenes are etched in our memories – the serenity and simple elegance of Hancock Shaker Village, the originality and creativity of Naumkeag, lunch at Red Lion Inn, the manicured beauty of The Mount, the nostalgia of Rockwell’s America and his Stockbridge in particular. We also pinch ourselves at how perfect our weather conditions were to enjoy the bountiful berried plants and brilliant foliage of Tower Hill, the enthusiasm of our guides at Elm Bank, Mt. Auburn Cemetary, and Arnold coupled with the magnificent trees of those special venues, and our walk back in history through Concord – the cradle of two Revolutions.
We encountered along the way a number of interesting personalities from our past from illiterate Mother Ann Lee who would help lead one of the most influential religious sects in our history to the creative team of Mabel Choate and Fletcher Steele to the determined Edith Wharton and her cross-state rival Isabella Stewart Gardner and the equally driven Professor Sargent. We got a good glimpse of Henry David Thoreau and his mentor Ralph Waldo Emerson and walked the hallowed grounds where they rest . We also walked and rode the Freedom Trail where ordinary men and women became giants of their time and exemplars for generations to come as well as the beautiful and eerily pastoral battlefield of Concord’s North Bridge. We marveled at the creative genius of the Glass Flower artisans, the Blaschkas and the ability of Rockwell to tell the American story in such gentle, humorous, and heart-wrenching ways.
From Shaker simplicity to Gilded Age opulence, from natural beauty to brilliantly crafted landscapes, and from military revolution to the revolution of ideas, our New England encounter provided contrasts and interwoven threads. New friendships were made and old friendships were renewed. Again, many thanks for helping us to have such an enjoyable and memorable experience.