Life is a Miracle Collection

My Cherished Homecoming Autobiography

My Cherished Homecoming
Autobiography

I had prayed about every contingency: from plane crashes to high-jacking and bombs; to delays or missing flights, even about children pushing on the back of my seat during a flight. The one thing I didn't pray about was losing my ID card!

We are a suburb of San Antonio (SA). When we got to the SA Airport, I panicked ... thinking, after all of my preparation, I had forgotten to take my ID! I almost cried at the check-in counter. It was too late to go home to retrieve it. My daughter Michelle and I searched my luggage, twice. It was around my waste, in my money belt all the time!

I spent weeks preparing for my vacation to Iowa and California, making a list of what to take, being mindful of airport regulations. I took a small bottle of my favorite perfume, TouJours Moi. I had worn it for years when it was discontinued. It returned later, by popular demand, but at a much higher price. My list included a money belt that I would wear under my clothes.

I hadn't flown for a number of years. After the airport confiscated my purse, money belt and shoes, I still wasn't prepared to be frisked. I felt a little criminal, but understand it is necessary these days.

Traveling by American Airlines, I flew into my hometown of Dubuque, IA by American Eagle, a subsidiary of American Airlines, in mid August. Dubuque is generally considered the oldest city in the Mid West.

One summer, I drove a 30-passenger trolley (trackless since the l950's). I took them to the Greyhound Dog Track. I was the tour guide as well, so I showed the passengers the impressive Victorian architecture in Dubuque. I also took them to the Port of Dubuque Ice Harbor, a 70 slip marina in the downtown area. Tourists could browse the shops, go to the Diamond Joe casino or take excursions on the paddle-wheel boats, operated by steam since 1812.

There was also the Stone Cliff Winery, the Grand Harbor Resort and Water Park, the National Mississippi River Museum and Aquarium, the Mississippi River Walk, Star Brewery (closed now, but was part of a Sylvester Stallone movie, the F.I.S.T. made in 1978.) and the Shot Tower, once used to produce lead shot.

A retired dredger boat (floating plant) is now a museum. It was like a giant vacuum cleaning for the mud and sentiment from the river, going down 25 ft. If it weren't for dredgers, ports and waterways would quickly become untraversable. Sometimes, dredgers have been known to pick up gold or gems.

Divided by the Mississippi River (the second longest river in the US. Its source is from N. Minnesota, and stretches all the way to the Gulf of Mexico.), Dubuque is mostly in Iowa.

East Dubuque is in Illinois, an unlikely combination of taverns and churches. It has many rolling hills, as does most of Eastern Iowa.

Julian Dubuque was a Frenchman who is said to have married Potosa, a Meskwaki Indian chief's daughter. They were also known as the "fox tribe".

On the other side of Dubuque is the Wisconsin bridge, which we are proud of, along with a great view of the "mighty Mississip". We've often seen barges, tug boats, dredgers, small private boats and jet skis lining the river.

A few miles from there is the famous "House on the Rock", an elevated structure, guarded by rather ominous stone gargoyles. It has 3264 windows, extending 218 feet in length!

Massive Stroke

I visited a week with my older sister, Donna, who had suffered a massive stroke but, thank you Jesus, she had made a spectacular recover through hard work, perseverance and most of all a faith in God's healing power! The family had prayed, continuously, for her miraculously full and speedy recovery.

Within five weeks, she was walking and talking again, sounding normal on the phone! In six to eight months, she was cooking, gardening and rearranging the guest room for my visit! I noticed their large, newly renovated kitchen was super-organized, with dishes and juices all stacked and color coded.

Her husband, Jerry, kept busy with multiple hobbies. He helped me with my new cell phone, bringing me into the 21st Century. Now, I'm doing word processing again and the internet.

The last time they saw me, I was depressed about an ordeal I'd been through ... a 5-month bout with Manic-Depression, for which I was hospitalized. But God always helps us out of situations or through them. I had come a long way since that time, and was anxious to show my family the change. The trip was empowering, and gave me a renewed energy and "new lease on life".

During my time in a mental facility, I experienced some changes that made me feel my life was no longer pertinent. I would never think of ending it; I just felt life had run its course. I stopped driving, when my daughter, Michelle, flew to Dubuque to drive me to Texas where she lived.

I had just driven the 3-4 hour trip back to the hospital after my mother died. Having experienced mom dying and a couple of car accidents in years past, I lacked the confidence anymore. I felt I'd had my time of driving,having driven and narrated Trolley Tours (30 passenger bus) one summer, and eight years of driving on the speedy Autobahn highway in Germany with no speed limit!

But I was excited to take the trip, flying back to see my siblings. Traveling to IA and CA, I took seven planes in two weeks! A lot of walking, but a good kind of challenge. It was exhilarating to be on my own again!

Now I have an old passion, but new exciting and challenging career in writing; a miracle-filled life time of experiences! Did I mention " exciting and challenging"!!

One day, while Donna was in a Rehab Center, she had a dream. In it, she was showing off her new shoes as she danced around the room. When she awakened, she was still in a giddy mood. She was asked to climb a short staircase, which she did. At the top was a landing and a chair. She sat down, waving her hand like Queen Elizabeth, announcing: "I am the matriarch of my family". Good therapy, I'd say.

My brother, Vance, 16 years my junior, had matured in the 14 years since I had seen him. With his wife by his side, he really stepped up in my time of need, before I moved to Texas.

My daughter, Michelle, was planning to go with me, when I flew to IA. But she is the General Manager of the Longhorn Cafe and was in the process of hiring another manager, who she needed to train.

They say that "home is where the heart is", and there was a part of my heart that
was missing. My sister, Gloria, had moved to California. So, that was my next stop, flying into California's San Luis Obispo Regional Airport.

Arriving in beautiful Santa Maria, CA, Gloria had planned a full agenda of sight-seeing and fun. Her husband, Paul, was an excellent driver, so I didn't worry about riding on the highway. We took in many resort area shops and restaurants in the neighboring towns. Finally arriving in the Danish village of Solvang, it reminded me of Denmark and a little Viking souvenir. Does that make me a typical tourist?