The GPS took us on a loop, to avoid traffic, I had never been on before. As the roads wound through beautiful Tennessee countryside, parallel to the congested highway, at one point I thought where are we. It “felt” so far off the beaten track, not even on the right side of the highway, and yet since I had never gone that way before, I had to trust the GPS and keep driving.

The music was blaring on the radio and I was singing out loud “There’s honey in the rock, water in the stone, manna on the ground, no matter where I go. I don’t need to worry, now that I know, everything I need You’ve got. There’s honey in the rock!” (Brooke Ligertwood) The skies were blue, it was a gorgeous day. Then I came around a bend and there was a clearing with only farmland and one old barn. I saw it in the distance but as I got closer the more I appreciated it.

You see I am a city girl from Minneapolis, MN. We had houses right next to each other. We grew up with street lights, BMX bikes and lots of concrete. Oh we had a little yard, but nothing like the farmlands of Kansas, Montana or Oklahoma. I did live in Seattle, WA for six years, and the mountains, the trees and the windy roads made me never want to leave there. I actually used to say, that was the best place I ever lived. But my dad said to me years ago, Lisa, your best is in front of you not behind you. I never forgot that.

Now on a windy Tennessee road, not sure where I am, we come around the bend and there is this old barn, with a faded American flag and an old car. I slow down so I can save this moment in a picture. My heart was struck by the beauty of this land I call home. America the beautiful, God shed your grace on thee. We are not perfect people, but I love this land of the brave and the home of the free. America is still my favorite place to be and now Tennessee is where I want to be.