Today was a travel day, so sightseeing was short and we  will finish tomorrow.  During our journey from New York to Pennsylvania, the land flattened out a bit and so did the Fall color, as many of the leaves had already fallen and the trees were barren to some degree.  We passed through farm country and spotted picturesque barns, horses, cows and plowed and harvested fields along side the interstate.  As we neared Scranton and Harrisburg, we began to see evidence of mining operations and railroad tracks criss-crossing the landscape.  We passed large, billowing black smoke plumes near Scranton, but could not make out the origin or nature of the fire and hoped it was not someone’s home or business.  As we neared our destination though, the colors of Autumn reappeared in the more mountainous regions and the sun shone through clouds making visible rays that reached to kiss the ground.

We arrived earlier than expected, so we started our tour of Gettysburg at the visitor’s center to watch the film, tour the museum and see the Cyclorama (a HUGE circular painting – oil on canvas – done by a French artist and his crew, that depicted the battle scenes and the regional appointments.  It was embellished with real props and lighting and a narration to make quite an amazing attraction – see it if you get the chance.

Being in Gettysburg reminded me of a song that we once heard at the Lincoln animatronic attraction in Disneyland that is called Two Brothers.  It has a moving lyric and coupled with period photos, it tells a tale of a family that gave both of their sons to opposing sides and lost one in the tragedy. I would like to share this with you and offer it up as our words of the day in hopes that we will somehow learn from our mistakes of the past and avoid these conflicts with peaceful and cooperative measures. This applies to government, at large, but also to our own family units.  The price is high.  Tomorrow, we will tour the battlefields, then off to Roanoke, Va and the Shenandoah Mountains.

Click on the (Youtube) link to hear the song and see the period photos:

Two Brothers