This evening I had one of those...moments. The kind of moment where a complete life lesson flashes before my eyes and convicts me all in a single moment.

The picture above (taken with my cellphone, by the way!) is a scene from a place called The Old Mill. Now I have been to alot of picturesque places in my life...but this place took my breath away. Actually, I'm at a loss as to how to describe what I saw. If I was held at gunpoint and forced to give some sort of explanation, I would say it was like The Hobbit meets Thomas Kincaid.

The Old Mill itself is not necessarily the topic of this post...see, I DID NOT have The Reb with me (gasp!) and was not able to capture what I saw (I was kicking myself). And my policy is: no pics, no post. We are planning on going tomorrow morning for the "photo shoot". If you are tired of seeing pictures of Abby, I suggest you unsubscribe to this blog now.

Here's the sirloin of my post for this evening...

We knew nothing of The Old Mill...it was NOT in the AAA handbook (and if it is not there, it doesn't exist, right?) or any websites, etc. So, how did we find it? Well, the Amaro's rock the GPS - we go nowhere without plugging in our coordinates. So we were on our way to dinner...tonight I picked, so I plugged the info into the GPS. If any of you have GPS, you know that after you plug in your details there is that option...you know the one.

Fastest Time vs. Shortest Distance

I am ALL about "fastest distance"...why wouldn't I be? I want to be there now...no time for anything else. Because you know...you hit that shortest distance option and there's no telling where that stinkin' GPS will take you. Shortest distance does NOT equal fastest time. That's why you have an option ;)

Well I must have swallowed a little too much chlorine in the pool today because I clicked "shortest distance". Sure enough, we were winding through residential neighborhoods - no freeway within a 5 mile radius for sure. Of course, I was lamenting the entire time as we weaved through wooded areas and hit 15 stop signs and 37 speed bumps. But along the way, we saw it...The Old Mill...tucked in a very unsuspecting spot. If we blinked, we may have missed it. And we surely would not have seen it had I selected fastest time.

We stopped the car and walked down the cobblestone path...and then I laid my eyes on the scene...and then I knew...and then I was convicted.

SLOW DOWN.

THE FASTEST WAY IS NOT ALWAYS BEST.

STOP SIGNS ARE NOT AN EVIL CONSPIRACY SETUP SPECIFICALLY TO MAKE YOUR LIFE DIFFICULT.

SPEED BUMPS ARE THERE FOR A REASON.

DRIVING 20 MILES PER HOUR DOESN'T HAVE TO PRODUCE ANXIETY.

ENJOY THE JOURNEY...IT'S NOT ALWAYS ABOUT THE DESTINATION.

YOUR DAUGHTER IS GROWING UP SO FAST...DON'T MISS IT.

You know me...when I get schooled, I love to turn the table. So my friends - where in your life might you be in need of the "shortest distance" option?

Slow down...you may just stumble on an old mill of your own.

stop signs, speed bumps and winding roads,
k

ps - stay tuned for pictures from "The Old Mill"