Memphis

We stayed at Meeman-Shelby Forest State Park. When I was young it was just Shelby Forest and we used to love going there. The campsites were small and oddly arranged and the bath-house not particularly clean, but all-in-all not too bad a place. At least they came in everyday and mopped the floors and disinfected the toilets.
We arrived on Wednesday got set up and fixed supper. I was settled in my chair outside and TM was going to take TD for a walk. Would you believe that stinker (TD not TM) came over to me and knocked the book right out of my hand! Seems he decided I should walk also. What a bossy dog.
Thursday we went over to Lil and Jack's for the afternoon. We had a great visit and a nice lunch with them. We got back to the campsite just before the big storm hit. Tornado watches and everything.
I called my cousin Beverly to see about getting in touch with and seeing her mother, Aunt Doris. I did get to talk with Aunt Doris, but, despite all plans, was unable to visit with her. Beverly and I were going over there on Friday morning, but Beverly called me early to let me know that her mother was just not up to visitors. Aunt Doris is fine, but her husband, Dick, had a stroke a couple of weeks ago and Doris has been really stressed and not sleeping well. I could certainly understand that.
We also called our friends Andy and Delores, whom we knew on Guam. They are living in Covington, near Memphis. It was so good to talk with them. We were able to meet on Friday night for dinner and have a nice long visit. The kind where you just don't realize how quickly the time has gone. We got to the restaurant at 5p and left at 8:30. Nothing like good food and good, Christian friends.
Saturday we went back to Lil and Jack's. She fixed a yummy dinner. They sure did adore Traveling Dog. Jack would have kept him in a heartbeat, but we weren't giving TD up.
Sunday we attended Forestview Church of Christ and really enjoyed the lessons and the people. Later that afternoon we went to visit with Beverly and her husband, David. Beverly had gotten out some family pictures and other memorablia for me to see. It was great going thru the things and comparing our impressions of our Gillespie relatives.
Afterwards we made a quick stop at my cousin Mary's and picked up some letters and pictures from our grandfather Emerson's time in WWI. I can't wait to go thru this stuff and have TM get it scaned into the computer. I also hope to find someone able to preserve the actual documents. If you want to know more, just ask me. I find all this so exciting.
Some of you may know that Mary is the cousin who had a liver transplant a year ago. It has been a pretty difficult year, but Mary is now looking good and feeling good - well, except for the Spring sinus stuff. Who doesn't seem to have some of that?
Thanks for reading and I will soon be catching you up on our visits to Hohenwald, Etheridge and Lawrenceburg.
God Bless.