The Promised Land
Estimated reading time: 11 minutes, 2 seconds
Sweet Honeymoon Memories
Lead to a New Adventures
“Welcome to the Promised Land,” said Kim, the Pennsylvania state park ranger behind the desk, as we entered the log cabin office. Kim appeared to be a few years older than Jan or me. Like me, she had red hair, barely longer than mine. The sunlight from the window created shadows of the three of us on the eastern wall. I had been here previously but only to swim in the lake and hike around the immediate environs.
Kim’s voice pulled me out of memory land,” How can I help you?”
“This is my wife Jan, and we have a reservation for a campsite.”
After a few minutes of rustling papers on her desk, she responded, “Yes, we have your reservation for a campsite for a week.”
“If we wanted to stay a shorter period, can we change the reservation?”
“Yes, but why would you want to leave the promised land?”
Jan chimed in, “We like the promised land, although I hope to go to Israel one day, we are on our honeymoon, and the odometer broke on our rental car. So, we thought we might travel to more places.”
“Congratulations! I hope to have a lovely honeymoon when I finish college and marry. Do you know how long you will stay with us?”
Realizing I had been incorrect about her age, I inquired where she was going to college.
“Penn State. I am in my third year.”
“We do not know how long we will stay as of now,” Jan explained.”Can we discuss our options tonight and let you know in the morning?”
“No problem. We will need to know 24 hours in advance of your departure. I wish we had a honeymoon suite for you, but the best I have is campsite seven. That site has a view of the lake and, on cloudless nights, provides an ideal spot to view the sunset and see the heavens.”
“Thanks, it sounds lovely. Are you trying to convince us to remain here for the rest of our honeymoon?”
“No, I am not. I am just sharing the positive benefits of the promised land!”
After almost 48 years, I recently lost my wife, Jan Lilien. Like The Little Prince, Jan and I believed that “The most beautiful things in the world cannot be seen or touched, they are felt with the heart.” This blog is a collection of my random thoughts on love, grief, life, and all things considered.
