The Seven Local "Wonders"

...wonders being in quotes because their distinction is relative. What I prize, others might dismiss as unnotable.

1. The Trees. There is a main thoroughfare in my town that is banked by old trees, branches covering the roadway like a tent. In the spring, they bloom with white flowers, and in fall they display every color an aging leaf can produce. I often go out of my way just to drive under these trees. My picture doesn't do it justice.

2. The Bench. My town doesn't really have a town square, but it does have a main crossroads with a park in one corner. In this little park is a bench, and on this bench on a summer evening, you're likely to find a group of elderly gentlemen known as The Old Men on the Bench. Every night, these men gather, either on the bench or in lawn chairs beside it, and they watch the cars go by. They are a landmark, a keepsake of our little town.

3. Quantrill's Head. William Clarke Quantrill was a Confederate guerrilla during the Civil War, even though he was from Dover (actually a teacher in the Dover school at one point). He rode west with Jesse and Frank James, and during The War, they massacred the abolitionist town of Lawrence, Kansas, killing hundreds of civilians, burning and looting. Quantrill's bones were scattered around various places, but his head ended up back in Dover. A wax mold was made of it before it was finally buried in a cemetery here, and this wax head is kept in a refrigerator at a local museum.

4. The Muskingum Water Conservancy District. In previous posts, I've described one lake where we have a house, but it's actually a part of a group of lakes managed by a conservancy district and controled by a series of dams that keeps us all from floating away in heavy rains.

5. Mr. Bennett. My neighbor's little white Bishon dog is a wonder to me because he becomes a frantic ball of joy when I walk into the room. He's always ready with lappy kisses and sometimes a dribble of pee when he greets me.

6. Jonah. My other neighbor's dog, a chocolate lab, is also a wonder. His tail starts wagging when he first sees me in my driveway, and by the time I reach him in his own driveway, his whole body shakes with a happy greeting.

7. The Amish. My town is very near one of the largest Amish communities in the States, or maybe even THE largest. Whatever one might say about the apparent inconsistencies in their lifestyle--unwilling to own a car but happy to accept a ride from what is called a Yoder* Loader (a van that takes the Amish to places they need to go, like Wal-Mart.), they are a wonder. After all of these years living beside the English, they maintain their separate lifestyle and hold true to their convictions. While I respect that they don't like to be photographed, this picture taken by Daughter #1 is irresistible.

*Yoder is a common Amish surname.