Robins and flowers!

Wednesday, February 23, 2011

WYTHEVILLE, VA – If you’re wondering how this town’s name is pronounced, it rhymes with “Smithville” – and it’s named after George Wythe, one of the signers of the US Constitution.

We’ve changed our main direction from southward to westward today, though on the map, our route still follows a diagonal southwestern line. We could see our breath this morning when we crossed the road in Winchester to the Dunkin Donuts for hot beverages to drink on the road, and there was snow along the highway and in the woods we passed. The sun was shining, though, and the countryside was lovely, with rolling hills, lots of deciduous trees, and peaceful farmland.

As the day progressed and we got further south, we realized we hadn’t seen snow for some time. For a while, though, we passed trees and grasses coated in ice – evidence of freezing rain – which, mercifully, hadn’t coated the highway at all.

Not long after that, we spotted several fields that were a true green! Farmers in southern Virginia were letting their cows and horses graze in the fields, even though most of the ground was covered in yellow grass, not green.

We picked up some sandwiches when we fueled up just before noon, somewhere south of Staunton, and pulled over at a rest stop to eat them, even though we decided not to sit at a stone picnic bench to do so; it was a bit cool to just sit, but we could definitely sense a warming trend. We strolled around a bit to stretch our legs and I distinctly heard the chirp-chirp of a robin! What a wonderful sound for a Canadian to hear in February!

The numbers on the thermometer in the truck mounted steadily all day, starting at around 37, then 40, then finally 55! It was like we were driving into spring, and what a lift that gave our spirits! The real surprise was the fleeting glimpse of a low shrub by the highway, covered with small yellow flowers! It was just one clump that covered as much ground as a sleeping bag might, but that flash of yellow was an amazing sight after yesterday’s miles and miles of frozen black-and-white countryside.

We passed so many signs describing museums and historic sites connected to the Civil War. A huge stone mansion, complete with double chimneys at either end, dominated one hillside. It was probably built at a time when slaves groomed the grounds and tended the fires inside. When we talked about the history of Wytheville with the woman at the front desk of our hotel, she told us her grandmother had memories handed down to her of families that had been torn apart by the Civil War, when some sided with the North and some with the South.

It’s lovely to chat with people around here, because they all have a wonderful southern drawl. I suppose we must be the ones with the accent, though it doesn’t strike us that way! We hear “y’all” and “mayam” and drawn out words we always thought only had one syllable. Tomorrow we’ll be in Tennessee and we’ll see if the weather will allow us to sleep in the trailer for the first time!