140.9/15 The Little Brown Church in the Vale

Iowa Corn Fields

As we angled across Iowa on our way to Winnebago Industries in Forest City, we passed through miles and miles of fields of tall corn.

Entering Chickasaw County, we made a brief detour through Nashua to The Little Brown Church with the Old Bradford Pioneer Village next door.

The Little Brown Church in the Vale

Dedicated 1864

The Little Brown Church has an interesting history. In June 1857, William Pitts, a young music teacher was traveling to nearby Fredericksburg to visit his bride-to-be. When the stagecoach took a noon rest at Bradford, Mr. Pitts was moved by the lovely setting among large oak trees. On his return home to southern Wisconsin, remembering his vision, he wrote The Little Brown Church in the Vale.

As It Must Have Looked

When Mr. Pitts returned to teach music at Bradford Academy, he was amazed to find a small church being erected across the road at the very spot he had visualized in his hymn. On dedication day in 1864 his vocal class gave the hymn its first public rendition. The church and the song became forever linked.

Mr. Pitts sold the song to a Chicago publisher for $25.00 and used the money to help earn a medical degree, then returned to Fredericksburg and set up practice.

Office of Dr. Wm. S. Pitts
Fredericksburg, Iowa

His office building is preserved in the Old Bradford Pioneer Village. The little community of Bradford, once a thriving village along the wagon trail west, had gradually disappeared when the railroad by-passed it for Fredericksburg.

Dr. Pitt’s Office

The Chickasaw County Historical Society has saved cottages, log cabins, a country school, general store and the first Fredericksburg railroad depot. Each of the 15 buildings is furnished appropriately. A barn is full of old agricultural equipment and one of the houses displays a collection of children’s toys.

Log Cabin Interior

Cast Iron Stove

Buffalo Skin Coat
Bill’s grandfather Henry Field,
seedsman wore one.

Early Washing Machine

Wall Phone and Telephone Switchboard
“Mrs. Brown this is an emergency call,
please get off the line!”

Iowa Tall Corn

We enjoyed remembering the old days, a pleasant break from tall corn fields.

The Little Brown Church ..in the Vale..

135.9/10 Our Eleven Room Mansion

Our Home Away from Home

Some wonder how Jean and I manage for such a long period in such a small house; after all, though Jean is rather petite, I am rather gargantuan. At a first glance such close proximity for 161 days (23 weeks) seems impossible, especially when you consider the places we have been that discourage enjoying the great outdoors: very hot and humid jungle weather, flies and hornets wanting a share of our food, mosquitoes that want to make us their food, cold wind and rain that dampen your enthusiasm, etc. It is more than just the fact we have been “keeping company” since 1945 and, shall I say, been in close contact for over 59 years.

The Mystery Is Exposed

The simple fact is: the Dream Machine is larger on the inside than it is on the outside! “How can that be?” you ask incredulously. It’s all a matter of dimensions. I will try to explain it in terms any 6 year old (computer whiz) could understand.

Consider an ordinary box: if you were a member of the “Flatlanders” race who know only two dimensions, you would only see a rectangle. And you would be amazed at all the goodies that can be put into that rectangle as the box is filled with Black Forest cakes, Mrs. Fields Chocolate Chip cookies, and half gallons of Hagen Däz Triple Chocolate ice cream. (I’m sorry, my mind wandered a bite.)

I know you are jumping ahead of me in this logical argument: we “Solids” (some more than others) know only three dimensions and so see the box that can just hold 12 half gallons of Hagen Däz Triple Chocolate ice cream on the bottom layer, 6 dozen Mrs. Fields Chocolate Chip cookies in the middle layer, and 6 Black Forest cakes on the top layer as full. We think it’s a magic trick when someone comes along and adds 48 Big Mac hamburgers and an equal number of large fries without disturbing the original contents. Welcome to the fourth dimension!

I am sure you all are familiar with the British science programme that features the Time Lord, Dr. Who. Well, Dr. Who’s main conveyance is a Tardis: on the outside it looks like a 30” by 30” by 6’ blue English police box (like one of our formerly ubiquitous phone booths), but as you enter the door you find a large control room about 30’ by 30’ by 20’ high and when you go down the stairs you find all the other necessary rooms needed to travel through space and time. Normally there are just three people traveling together, but on occasion, there have been hundreds.

The Exterior

The Dream Machine embodies the
mysteries of the fourth dimension.
In origin, it is a 1995 Winnebago Rialta.

Now that you understand and are a believer, I will introduce you, illustrated by real photographs, to our little Dream Machine. I won’t go into much detail about the exterior as most people have little trouble understanding that part. The vehicle is 20’–6” long by 7’–4” wide by 8’–3” high to the top of the air conditioner and weighs about 7,000 lb. It is built by Winnebago Ind. on a Volkswagen chassis and powered by a 2.5 liter, fuel injected, five cylinder Audi-Volkswagen gasoline engine. Normally we expect a range of 300 miles at from 15 to 17 miles per gallon, depending on conditions.

Standard equipment includes the afore mentioned 110 V air conditioner, a 2.5 KW generator, microwave, hot water heater, TV antenna, 1.1 cu ft refrigerator, built-in tanks to hold propane, a week’s worth of fresh water, gray water and black water, a large RV type battery, to which I have added two more making a total of three house batteries. It is painted white with purple decals and has a low streamlined, rounded shape.

The Interior

As you step into the high-ceilinged Entryway, you confronted with several directions in which to turn. We will start by entering the left-hand wing (toward the rear).

The small Workbench provides
a convenient place
to lay out camera equipment.

First you find yourself at a small, well lighted, both by natural light and a fluorescent fixture, Workshop where I work on cameras and other equipment while seated comfortably.

The Research Area is a convenient place
to lay out maps, brochures, and the like.

Next, especially when the recreation and office room is busy, I study manuals and guide books, etc. in the Research & Study Area which is conveniently located within reach of the library and reference shelves.

The Bedroom with its linen storage
is inviting after a hard day of play.

That leads us to one of the more important rooms in the house: the decorously softly lit Bedroom with its picture window and convenient adjacent wardrobe and dressing area, contains a full-size bed with a sumptuous, thick, comfortable mattress with a 2” deep pillow top add-on and royal red and gold bedspread. It also has a reading light for pursuing that novel you can’t wait to finish.

Our mini Meditation Center
provides us with a corner
where we can pray, read, & meditate together.

We have created a Meditation Center that includes a shelf of spiritual reading books to add to the reference books found on rear shelves (larger books, maps, and other stationary supplies are in the main storage area). Note the convenient thermostat for the gas furnace.

This Pantry Closet holds some of the larger items
such as bread and juices.
Fresh fruit and smaller canned goods
are found in auxiliary pantry drawers in the kitchen.

Finally this wing contains a convenient Pantry Closet and bread store only a few steps from the kitchen. The pantry was reincarnated from the manufacture’s original equipment shirt closet. (Our regular clothes closet is big enough to hold all our hang-up clothes, shoes, including hiking boots, all the camera equipment, and spare medicines and toiletries plus a laundry bin below.)

For complete privacy or for taking a shower,
the Bathroom walls slide forward to double its size.
When not in use, the large basin tips up.

Returning to the Entryway, we find a convenient Bathroom with all the usual amenities: medicine cabinet with mirror, large basin, counter top, toilet, and a hand shower with a sunken floor. Hot water is provided by the water heater that is heated either by the engine when driving or 110V electricity.

The convenient Kitchen
provides us with 80 to 90% of our meals.

Back at the Entryway, we now turn toward the right-hand wing (forward end). The first thing we notice is the high ceilinged skylighted Atrium in the middle of several rooms. On our left is an efficient Kitchen with a two burner stove, sink, counter space, refrigerator, auxiliary pantry, and two open trays for fresh fruit, wine, etc. There is also a dish cupboard, silverware drawer, and dry goods cupboard; the microwave cupboard has been morphed into a pots and pan cupboard.

The large Dining Room table allows plenty of room
for the simple meals we prefer.
The Engine Room contains the usual driving equipment,
music system, our GPS Navigator, Millie, etc

Straight ahead is the spare chair for a guest who might visit and beyond that is the curtained-off Engine Room from which the vehicle is driven.

On your right from the Atrium area is the highly appreciated and convenient Dining Room. Because we often camp far from towns in Forest Service campgrounds, we often use canned or dehydrated foods. Since we have only three chairs, the large formica topped table can only be used by three people at time. We very seldom eat out because at every thing is so convenient, although traditionally, we enjoy KFC chicken on Saturday nights.

We spend a lot of time in the Recreation Room & Office.

When chores are done we retire to our Recreation Room and Office, where I might indulge in watching a movie on my laptop or Jean may accept the challenge of a jigsaw puzzle. We may read or compose serious blogs. Jean can satisfy her curiosity by identifying the flowers (taxonomic determination) seen and photographed that day, or I might work on creating a masterpiece from a vista photographed that day.

Did I mention that most rooms in the house are very conveniently located only a few steps from each other. The home is so spacious that we seem to be able to keep out of one another's hair most of the time; though with so many rooms it is tiring just to think of going from one end to the other end of the house.

And so, you have seen our little Home Away from Home.

131.9/06 Jus’ Lookin’ for a Home

[Photos and text mostly by Jean; adjustment of pictures and formating by Bill]

We carry AAA CampBooks which list a few of the better (and more expensive) campgrounds. At every State border, we stop at their Welcome Center and pick up campground and state park literature.

On Saturday night, we need laundry and showers, a dump station, and a Catholic Church nearby. Planning ahead is required and Bill usually phones for a reservation at a commercial campground, such as KOA. Many offer WiFi service.

COMMERCIAL CAMPGROUNDS

KOA, Page, Arizona
Disappointingly, No WiFi

Camp Loma Paloma,
at the edge Big Bend Rancho State Park

Camping Jumeau,
south of Ville de Québec, Canada

TRUCK STOPS allow free parking, but sometimes it is very noisy with trucks passing by, or those parked with refrigerator units going on and off, or the loudspeaker announcing “Your shower is now ready!” We have a membership card to Flying J which gives 1¢ a gallon discount. Their booklet lists all of their locations; usually just off major freeways at the outer edge of town. Besides facilities for truck drivers, they have a restaurant and gift shop (handy for postcards and the refrigerator magnets we are collecting), and are open 24 hours.

Flying J, London, Ontario Province, Canada
Stop drooling: the prices are per liter,
making it around $4 per gallon in Canada.

WAL*MART

Wal*Mart stores sell a Rand McNally U.S. Road Atlas that shows the location of all of their stores, listed by State giving their status and address. Most large towns have one on the outskirts, just off a freeway. They allow RV’s to park on the premises, off in a far corner of their enormous parking lots. Super Wal*Marts are usually open 24 hours, handy for grocery shopping and bathroom access. We find them very convenient when it is raining and driving is difficult. An occasional bonus is WiFi from an adjacent large motel. We found a few towns, such as in New Mexico, which post a city ordinance prohibiting overnight stays.

Wal*Mart, Carroll, Iowa,
next door to train depot

Wal*Mart, Kearney, Nebraska.
In the far corner of their parking lot,
we could access WiFi from
Quality Suites motel across the street.

FRIENDS This trip was so long that we needed a few mail drops on the way which were pre-arranged: (1) cousin Bill & Nancy McPhee, Phoenix AZ. (2) Ann Saxton, San Antonio, TX. (3) David & Arceli Suley, Washington DC, who were our neighbors for 3 years at Marymount, Mzuzu, Malawi. Our expected stop of 3–4 days turned into 8 when Bill required a root canal, antibiotic regime and subsequent root cap—a big inconvenience for all of us. (4) Phil & Elaine Alexander, Ann Arbor, Michigan who were Army neighbors in Toole, Utah in 1955.

Fr. Pierre LeClerc & Bill
in front of White Father’s Provincial house,
Montreal, Canada.

Phil & Elaine Alexander, Ann Arbor, Michigan
They live at the end of a long drive
on a beautifully landscaped small estate
surrounded by thick woods. (Bill says, "Jungle.")

And they turned the tables on us as we left,
taking our photo and
sending it to us by e-mail.

WINNEBAGO INDUSTRIES, FOREST CITY, IOWA

The Dream Machine
returned to its place of birth
for some technical assistance.

As drop-in customers for minor repairs at the Winnebago Industries factory, we were given a free parking site with electricity next door to Customer Service until our turn arrived and we were taken care of: getting the roof and skylight caulked, toilet resealed, bolts tightened, etc. (arriving Sunday September 9th and leaving on Saturday, September 15th.

STATE and NATIONAL PARKS

Government Parks are very attractive with spacious grounds and trails (where Jean can find plants) (Bill says, "Commune with the flora"), restrooms, often with showers, dump station, and choice of hook-ups or no services sites. They usually cost less than commercial camp grounds. We stayed at those fairly near to a major highway.

Stephen F. Austin State Park,
near San Felipe, Texas on the Brazos River

Hidden in thick scrub oak at
Anastasia State Park, St. Augustine, Florida

Lake Ogallala State Park, Nebraska

Chisos Campground,
Big Bend National Park, Texas

STATISTICS

Camping days to date: 147, paid 94 days ($1,777)
Max paid $40.28 (Canada), free days 53
Over all average: $12/day,
average for paid campgrounds: $19/day.

123.8/29 The Thousand Islands Parkway

As we headed southwest toward the United States on autoroute 401, we left the Province of Quebec and entered Ontario Province. The Welcome Center had intriguing literature and we remembered photographs Jean’s sister and brother-in-law had shown us on Thousand Islands area in the St. Lawrence River. Deciding to spend a leisurely day along the Thousand Islands Parkway, we swung off the 401 just past Brockville and found ourselves on a lightly trafficked two-lane road within sight of the river.

Orange jewel-weed with pods,
Impatiens capensis

We stopped at many pleasant spots along the water. In wet places, jewelweed, Impatiens capensis, grew prolifically. Jean had first photographed it in Connecticut while on a genealogical expedition with our friend Diane Alexander. As all Impatiens, it is a touch-me-not, with fat oblong pods that pop and disperse their seeds when touched or pinched.

Orange jewel-weed, Impatiens capensis

This dainty orange-yellow flower is found in the U.S. from Florida to Nebraska, and in the northwestern states. and in southern Canada from Newfoundland to Saskatchewan. The old fashioned species that grew in grandmother’s garden, Impatiens balfourii, is pink and white. The lovely garden balsam in a myriad of colors is Impatiens balsamina. In Malawi Jean collected several magenta flowered species and a tall white one with red spots at the edge of a Nyika Plateau rain forest.

St Brendan Church
Rockport, Ontario

We particularly enjoyed the town of Rockport with its little St. Brendan church overlooking Rockport harbor from which boat tours are launched into the Thousand Islands region. St. Brendan is the patron of sailors and navigators. (I wonder if that includes GPS Navigators like our own Millie and her cousin Nellie.)

1000 Islands Skydeck on Hill Island

A few miles further south, we turned southeast toward the U.S. and went part way across the Thousand Island International Bridge toward New York, getting off on Hill Island, still in Canada. Passing by the duty-free shops, our goal was the Skydeck, a 400 foot viewing tower. The elevator was quite amazing: it did the 400 feet in 40 seconds, yet the acceleration and deceleration were barely perceptible

Views From the Top of Skydeck Tower

The Thousand Island International Bridge

Thousands of Islands

Most of the islands seem to be inhabited—
do you want to buy an island for your very own?

Mallory Landing framed by colorful sumac.

Staghorn sumac, Rhus typhina

Staghorn sumac, Rhus typhina, grows throughout eastern North America to the Missouri River, in South Dakota, Kansas and Utah. The shrub or small tree has conspicuous red “candles” (clusters of small fruits). The leaves turn scarlet and crimson a little earlier than other fall color before they fall off.

This night we opted for a KOA campground
rather than a Wal*Mart camping place.

An interesting highway phenomenon along the 401 highway was very large billboards set well off the road in strategic spots.

120.8/26 The Island City of Montréal

Friday, August 24, we woke to heavy rain in our camp outside of Ville de Québec. Dallying for a few hours, hoping the weather would clear, Bill finally moved us over to the dump station for that necessary weekly chore, then set out at 11:30 a.m., for the first time on the trip in a westerly direction, toward Montréal. After driving in a gusting rain for an hour, it finally did clear so most of the 160 miles on autoroute 40 along the St. Lawrence River was smooth sailing. Approaching the bridge over the St. Lawrence River to the Island of Montréal, traffic tightened up. Slowly crossing town on the elevated road, Millie (our GPS Navigator) guided us to our next “camp,” the Missionaries of Africa (White Fathers) Provincial house at 4:30 p.m. An old friend, Fr. Pierre LeClerc, who was on the plane with us when we all arrived in Malawi for the first time in 1959, greeted us and arranged food for all of us. After dinner we had a good time remembering our early days in Malawi (called Nyasaland, at that time).

Which reminds me of a story: as Fr. LeClerc, Jean, and I disembarked from the plane at Nyasaland’s only airport with a paved runway in August of 1959, Jean and I were greeted out on the “tarmac” by the Bishop and an American priest from our Diocese up in Northern Malawi, while poor Father LeClerc ended up staying his first night at the local flea trap hotel waiting for the people from his Diocese to come for him. Jean and I were whisked away to stay in a comfortable guest room at a local Catholic high school. But we did have a learning experience about African termites that first night: the room was very clean with painted walls and polished cement floor, but the brothers had not thought about a clothes closet, so we casually tossed our 24-hour-on-the-plane clothes onto the shiny smooth floor. Well, some of Jean’s under clothes were made of rayon, which is a form of cellulose as found in wood—wood eating termites somehow got through a crack in the floor and ate large holes in her underwear! Then there was the time I came out of the door to find a cobra raised up, striking, and spitting at our big black mama cat…

Reminiscing about times in Malawi
with Sr. Germaine, M.I.C.

Words are insufficient to relate the warm welcome we received from the religious we had worked among in Malawi. During our 4 day visit, we met 3 priests and at least 15 sisters we had not seen for 30 years. It was old home week! Hugs and kisses (on both cheeks!). Stories related about remembered events and people! Photos brought out to refresh memories and to bring us up to date!

One of the Bridges Connecting
Île Jésus (Laval) to Île Montréal (Montréal)

We had not remembered that Montréal and Laval were side-by-side islands in the St. Lawrence River. From the roof top of the M.I.C. (Missionary Sisters of the Immaculate Conception) Sisters house of retirement in Laval, we had an excellent view of the St. Lawrence River and a bridge from Laval to Montréal.

Our hosts gave us complete tours of their communities and stuffed us with all kinds of good things, as Sisters are wont to do. Then over a two-day period from 9 in the morning ‘til 8 at night, we toured the the city of Montréal and its port and visited the three major churches we were hoping to see.

The New and the Old—
a Modern Skyscraper and
a 150 Year Old Church

The base of the Cathedral of Mary, Queen of the World, erected in 1870 - 1894, contrasts with a modern skyscraper in blue glass. The Archbishop’s Cathedral is immense, although it is an exact one-third scale replica of St. Peter’s in Rome.

Le Royal Condominiums

Downtown Montréal features many skyscrapers linked underground by a maze of walkways stretching some 18 miles and embracing 1,600 shops, a department store, 200 restaurants and 30 theaters. Subterranean promenades and the Métro connect the clusters of buildings of underground Montréal.

Apartments Built for the Olympics

The Port of Montréal on the St. Lawrence River

Montréal’s position between the Atlantic Ocean and the Great Lakes serving large areas of Canada make its port a very busy one. There are also many pleasure craft along the waterway.

A Statue of St. Joseph with Jesus
at the Foot of St. Josephs Oratory
on the Side of Mont-Royal

We particularly wished to visit St. Josephs Oratory, a massive concrete basilica which began as a simple wooden chapel on the steep hillside of Mont-Royal. Br. André Bessette, a Holy Cross Brother served as gate keeper there until his death in 1937. Br. André cured thousands of pilgrims for which he credited St. Joseph. Abandoned canes and crutches decorate enormous entrance panels.

Basilica of St. Josephs Oratory

N.B. We have been involved for the past 6 years in writing the history our parish church, St. Joseph of Mountain View. Part of our Parish’s history involves the Holy Cross Brothers who established and operate St. Francis High School in our Parish.

The simple lines of Oratory’s interior
emphasize the Crucifix over the altar.

Some of the Many Canes and Crutches
Discarded by Those who were Healed

The Basilica of Notre-Dame de Montréal

The Basilica of Notre-Dame de Montréal was started in 1830 to replace the original parish church of 1672 in what is now the historic district near the waterfront. On completion 50 years later, it was the largest church in North America. The rather unpretentious exterior betrays the magnificence of the interior.

The Nave, Basilica of Notre-Dame

The lighting plan of the hugh church is masterfully executed. I tried to capture it in these two dimensional images, but they only suggest what it is really like. You have to be there to feel the vast nave receding into the darkness beyond, surrounding you with the coolness of outer space, the vault of the ceiling in deep blue with golden stars, and the crimson pillars outlined in gold caught by your peripheral vision.

Behind the Altar

As you approach the sanctuary you are overwhelmed by the blazing golds of the crucifix, bright shining blues in the background, warm reds and oranges delineated by rich purples, and fresh green emphasizing the spires over the crucifix. Interestingly, the stained glass windows depict the religious history of Montréal rather than the usual biblical scenes.



Having fulfilled all our hopes for renewing our acquaintance with the M.I.C. Sisters and the White Fathers and of visiting three of the major churches of Montréal, we left Québec Province and headed southwest—in the direction of home.