9/16/12 and 9/17/12 -  I'm in the small, quaint, art-centered town of Abingdon, Virginia visiting Jim and Jimmie Lou Bowden.  The parents of my deceased true love John Brevard.  As I passed the exits leading to the family home, I felt Brevard's spirit so strong as if he was sitting in my passenger seat. Dearest Brevard, our love will never die.  You are with me always.

Jim & Jimmie, the performance at Barter Stage was grand!  Sure wish Dick could have joined us too! Barter Theatre is such an amazing place.  It began in 1933 with one man's idea to have patrons pay with produce and has grown today into a year-round theatre with more than 160,000 visitors each year.  If any of you readers visit Abingdon, go to Barter!  Check it out at:  www.bartertheatre.com

In Abingdon, Jim pointed out to me this cotton plant displaying beautiful blossoms and nut shaped boll.  Inside the boll are the cotton fibers.

 
As I gazed upon this plant, I am being reminded that when cotton was harvested by hand, folks toiled in those sweltering cotton fields day after day separating the cotton fibers from the seeds within the boll, picking up to 450 lbs. of cotton a day and paid 1 cent per pound. Can you imagine?

There are many wonderful places to visit in Abingdon, and one of my favorite besides Barter Theatre on this trip was visiting the Olive Oil Company on Main Street.  I've never been big on wine tasting... but now oil tasting... thats my kind of place.  32 varieties/combinations of extra virgin and infused olive oils from estates in both the northern and southern hemispheres, and balsamic vinegars aged 12-18 years from Modena, Italy.

 
These beautiful handmade baskets on the shelf are designed and created by Deborah Partridge, and I am thrilled to say that I will be visiting this amazing Appalachian artist on my next stop. Yahoooooo!

 

I've spotted wolf sculptures around town - what's the story? Similar to the artfully designed whales along the shoreline in Connecticut, there are 52 uniquely designed wolves of varying sizes, shapes and decoration spotted around Abingdon created by local artists. In the Fall, an auction will be held and the proceeds of wolf sales will go to the town of Abingdon in support of needed beautification improvements of the town.

Why Wolf?  Abingdon was formerly known as Wolf Hills from 1775-1785.  This name came to be in 1956 when Daniel Boone gave the name Wolf Hills because his dogs were attacked by a pack of wolves while exploring this area on his way west.  Later this area became known as Black's Fort, and  finally Virginia Legislature named Abingdon in honor of Martha Washington's ancestral home in Abingdon, England.

Jim & Jimmie Lou,

My heart has been deeply blessed by our coming together again, and how wonderful that Eitra could pop in for a virtual visit too. Brevard's spirit shines upon and within your home and I know that you feel that as I do, and we all know that he is delighted that we shared this precious time together.

I will always remember those famous "Bowden-isms" 

Jimmie Lou's "Bless your heart - sweet thing" 

Aunt Jane's "Thank you Sugar"

 

...and of course ringing the goodbye bell family tradition

 

  - such a special tradition -

Postscript: All my life growing up in New England, I pronounced Appalachia with a (long a) sound and discovered here that its pronounced with a (short a sound as in cat). Thanks for letting me know Jim!  The education of traveling is such a wonderful thing!