Our Travels (Jon)

            -1-

Now Jon, who was my younger son

Loved his tennis as much as Jeff

I could not seem to interest them

In baseball, that I always played

From a kid thru army days.

But Jon, who is his high school days

Always liked to go off with me

Where e’er I went he would go too.

We made a trip, as I recall,

Way up to Nova Scotia’s shores

And stayed with some good friends of ours

To visit, and to look around

At properties that were for sale

To see if we could find a place

To stay at our vacation time

But this trip was of no avail.

And then when Jon had finished up

His schooling at Wachusett High

He did apply to BYU

And in his second year we chose

To drive to school, and then to make

The western loop e’er school began

And so we left, and took along

His girlfriend Chris, who would return.

            -2-

We traveled westward that first day

And slept that night in Illinois

We stopped for meals and cooked ourselves

And reached Wyoming for the night

Then traveled southward where the map

Showed a road, but was mostly track

At last we came out on the road

That led to Vernal in Utah.

And here we backtracked just a way

To watch the workers chip away

Around the dinosaurs’ old bones

In Dinosaur National Park.

From here we traveled south and west

That led to Moab where we stayed

Then up the mountains the next day

To visit Arches Monument.

From there we traveled west and south

And stayed that night in a small town

The name of which escapes me now.

But off we went the next morning

Up Red Canyon and then to Bryce

Which is a fascinating place

Of windswept towers, red and white,

Standing like ancient sentinels.

            -3-

From here we traveled on down south

And reached Grand Canyon after dark

We could not find a place to stay

So slept outdoors in sleeping bags

And with the morning’s early light

We watched the changes that took place

Across the canyon and within

We stood in awe at Angel Point.

We then went south thru Las Vegas

Not to stop, but just to see the

Brilliant lights of the gambling halls

That lighted all even in day

And when we felt we’d seen enough

We drove up to the Boulder Dam

Whose giant generators spin

To send its power to the coast.

And so we headed off again

Westward thru old Death Valley

To where it got so very hot

One hundred twenty in the shade

We passed thru there as best we could

Then needed water for the car

And were grateful for the soul who

Gave out water to those in need.

            -4-

When we had cooled the car enough

We headed north to Ursula

And this is where we spent the night

And after eating some breakfast

We left there for Yosemite

This was a place we could not miss

So spent our time in roaming ‘round

To see the sights that do abound.

We looked up at the giant cliff

Known only as El Capitan

And then we watched the giant falls

That must have dropped a thousand feet

Before it ever struck the rocks

And this is what we’d come to see

So sat there for the longest while

Just watching as the water fell.

Reluctantly, we left this spot

But had to go if we were to

Get through Sequoia National Park

Before we got to Livermore.

In Sequoia we did see the

Biggest trees that had ever lived

We filled the trunk with giant cones

Then later found ‘twas not allowed.

            -5-

We stayed the night in Livermore

And called the Hinkley’s that we’d be

In Sunnyvale early next day

And got directions to their house.

We reached their home ‘fore ten o’clock

And met my daughter Jennifer

Who’d stayed with them for a few weeks

To tend the Bishop’s three children.

We stayed there only for two days

And while there we saw the sights

Of San Francisco’s Golden Gate

And the prison at Alcatraz

The trolley also we did ride

And had lunch at Fisherman’s Wharf

Not just because the food was good

But so we’d say we’d eaten there.

We left next morning early on

Leaving Jenn until summer’s end

We crossed the bay on Tower Bridge

And headed up toward Oregon.

Jon was driving while I relaxed

But soon was going much too fast

And so missed the Highway Patrol

And got a speeding citation.

            -6-

But we continued on our way

And by three that afternoon

Had nearly reached the Crater Lake

And so we detoured just a bit

To see this lake that is renowned

For having depths the likes of which

Are rarely seen in other lakes

We stayed a while, then went our way.

We crossed into Washington State

At Ellensburg and it was late

We took Route Ninety heading east

And soon we entered Moses Lake

We found the road that led to Jean’s

And woke them up well after dark

Not knowing when we would arrive

They didn’t wait up but went to bed.

We stayed at Jean’s in Moses Lake

At least three days and maybe more

We saw the farm, met Max’s kin

We played with Erin and with Gill

But finally we had to leave

And so we headed east again

Thru Montana’s towering peaks

To reach Yellowstone’s North Gate.

            -7-

We stayed the night in Gardiner

In a log cabin did we sleep

And woke up early in the morn

To hear the bugling of the elk

There was a herd of elk nearby

Protected by a high wire fence

And they were kept just for their meat

A private herd that all could see.

We ate at a nearby diner

Then left there for the park’s North Gate

And once we entered, we made the loop

That circles thru the entire park

So we could see the moose and deer,

The elk, the bear, the buffalo

We saw the geyser and hot holes

And will remember Old Faithful.

But back to school and back to work

Both Jon and Chris and I had dates

He to Provo to start his year

Chris to Mt. Holyoke back home

And I back to my work again

And so we headed south once more

Past the lake at Yellowstone

Next the Tetons and Jackson’s Hole.

            -8-

We traveled south on Eighty-nine

And kept on going past Bear Lake

Then came into the Cache Valley

Where the church kept its films and fiches

We went on by, then thru Ogden

And saw the temple on the way

Then to the City of Salt Lake

To hear the singing of the choir.

We got good seats and heard them sing

For they did practice Thursday nights

For the Sunday presentation

Of “Music and the Spoken Word.”

And after we had heard them sing

We headed south to Provo where

Jon would go back to BYU

And Chris and I would head for home.

We stayed that night at Royal Inn

I was tired from driving so ate

Two tacos, then went right to bed

While Jon and Chris on their last night

Went out to eat, then roamed around

The campus where he’d go to school

He showed to Chris all of the sights

That people see who visit there.

            -9-

When morning came we said goodbye

Both Chris and I had just two days

Before she was due back in school

And I had to get back to work.

So Jon and Chris said their goodbyes,

Then we took turns and drove straight thru,

Never stopping except for gas

And reached our homes on Sunday night.

There is much more that could be said

But from that time on Jon and I

Did not go on long trips again

He came back east to finish school

And earned his way, two years at Clark

We helped him out in many ways

I drew his plans, helped build his house

But after that he went his way.