Unless you lived in a city all your life, you have probably driven or walked down an old dirt road.
Maybe it was a road home, a road to grandparents’ house, or to a favorite fishing or hunting spot.
I remember fondly the many dirt roads in my life. I was born in Grandpa and Grandma’s farmhouse on an old dirt road. Very few cars ever drove by. There were not many neighbors back then.
Grandpa’s brother had a farm south of us at the top of the hill on that dirt road. To the north of us, there were a few farms. Dirt roads to the east and west led to more farms.
Grandpa had a Model A Ford, but he didn’t drive it much. Maybe once a month, he would take Grandma and me to buy things we needed.
When he reached the end of the dirt road to the north, the paved road led to the main street in town.
South on the dirt road from the farm took us to the fishing or swimming hole. We went there a few times a year in the summer. As a kid, I always looked forward to that.
Later in my life, I drove many dirt roads to take my kids and grandkids fishing and hunting. We also drove down a dirt road to get to a weekend cabin we once owned. We rode our ATVs down a dirt road to the creek and to go hunting.
I believe, as Paul Harvey once said on his radio show, “What is wrong with our society today is that too many dirt roads have been paved. We would not have as many problems in America today if we had more dirt roads, because dirt roads build character.”
If kids today had to walk a dirt road to school without a smartphone that pollutes their lives, they would learn to get along better. They would also get more exercise.
There was less crime when roads were dirt. There were no drive-by shootings. Criminals did not rob homes because they knew there were barking, snarling dogs, and a double-barrel shotgun waiting for them.
It seems as though our values were better when our roads were dirt. Dirt roads taught patience. You did not drive too fast. If the dirt road washed out back then, you didn’t worry. You spent family time together and made memories.
If someone got stuck in the mud, you would hook up the team of horses and pull them out. You wouldn’t take anything they offered for helping them. You made a new friend.
In today’s fast-paced, technological world, we all need a place away from all the congested traffic on paved or concrete roads where people are looking at their smartphones instead of watching the road.
Someplace to go where our smartphones can’t get a signal. A place where we can fish, or camp, or hunt, or sit quietly and enjoy nature.
You will get your car or truck dusty or muddy on an old dirt road, but they will clean up. It will be worth it. Find a place you can escape to on an old dirt road.
SOMETHING TO THINK ABOUT
“Sometimes the best therapy is taking a long drive on a dirt road.” — Author unknown
(Larry Whiteley can be reached by email at larrywhiteley2@gmail.com or by text at at 417-830-9023.)
