Arizona

Being from Texas where everything is bigger and better, it is not easy to impress me. But let me tell you, the state of Arizona rose to the occasion.

Last week after flying to Colorado for the graduation of our goddaughter, we decided to swing by Arizona, visit with friends who are parents of some of my "grand conservatives," and spend a little money in protest of the protest that the City of Austin has against Arizona because of their immigration policy. We flew to Phoenix, rented a car and drove up to the Grand Canyon, over to Monument Valley, down to The Petrified Forest and Painted Desert, on down to Tucson, then back up to Phoenix.

As far as I can tell, that means we pretty much saw the whole state. Oh my gosh! Was God ever in a good mood when He was creating Arizona. The thought crossed my mind that Arizona was the canvas that the Lord used in creation to try out a few ideas. The mountain views and scenic drives are beautiful and watching Jerry's reaction to driving on the edge of a mountain with a substantial drop-off never ceases to amuse me. But, after all these miles of beautiful views, nothing prepares you for the moment you suddenly come upon the rim of the Grand Canyon.

Upon completion of His really big ditch diorama, the Lord moved east and dabbled in sculpture with the creation of His Monument Valley. Randomly, across the country side, huge rock formations sprout up out of the ground. And, in case you did not know it, the road that takes you through Monument Valley is not paved. This may, in fact, be the exact site of the original pothole.

By the time you get through Monument Valley every sense is overwhelmed. You begin to realize that things which would otherwise take your breath away have become almost common to you. So, like the wine taster who must clean their palate between wines, the Lord provided the landscape between Monument Valley and the Petrified Forest to get that feeling of awe and wonder out of your system. Well, at least that is what Jerry told me. Personally, I slept most of the way between the sites. Apparently, as a child I confused the terms "get in the car" with "let's take a nap." Much to Jerry's dismay, I've never straightened out the issue.

The Petrified Forest and Painted Desert were both impressive. Hot, but impressive. They tell you that, "it's a dry heat." But, then again, that's pretty much what I tell my turkey every Thanksgiving right before I put it in the oven. So, the desert loses a few points in my book for the extreme heat, but I suppose if it were beautiful and the perfect temperature I would then be complaining about the traffic jams.

But no scenery in Arizona tops the friends we have there. So, we received a guided tour of Tucson, enjoyed the hospitality of the parents of one of our Patriot Academy graduates, and proved that language is not a barrier to communication between me and a grand conservative. Hugs and kisses to Zoe.

We followed that up with a tour of Sedona, complete with time to spend catching up on current events and getting to watch Gaby (one of the children I have been known to feed ice cream to for breakfast) win first place in her race-walking track event. She even beat the state record for her age group. GO GABY!!!!! Hugs and kisses to Gaby and her brother, my very first grand conservative, Jose Arturo.

If you ever question the greatness of the mighty hand of God, just take a few days and look around Arizona.

Great is the Lord and most worthy of praise, His greatness no one can fathom.
Psalm 145:3