Please Don't Thank Me

I received a very sweet note in the mail today, and it got me to thinking.   It was from two sisters -- Heather and Regina -- who visited Afton Station in 2014, thanking me for meeting with them.   First of all, I was thrilled by actually getting a piece of snail mail as opposed to an email, although I do enjoy emails, too.  But mostly it made me think that in no way do I deserve to be thanked for what I do at the Station.  My work there is unquestionably the best, most fun, and most rewarding job I have done in my lifetime.  I should be thanking YOU, the travelers and visitors, for enriching my life this way.  So hold your thanks, and instead thank yourselves for the wonderful ways  you light up my life.

Here's the letter, I copy here with some embarrassment.

Thank  you!  Thank you!  Thank you for being the first Route 66 "friend" and "family" my sister and I met on our first tour of the Mother Road.   We stopped back by in September of 2014 but just missed you and your wonderful smile. Your enthusiasm and love for the people along the Route were not lost on us.  You gave us the spark that has started a tradition for my sister and I that we treasure greatly.  We will be back around Afton Station some day soon and will stop in to say Hi to the woman who starts our journey.
Much love,  Two Sisters on the Route, Heather and Regina, Charlotte, NC

This was another day filled with friendly faces.

 These twin brothers and their wives stopped in on their way across Route 66 to home in California.  The men were most interested in the car collection, and while they gazed at Packards, I had a nice chat with the ladies.   They were from Calabasas and Simi Valley, CA.

Other visitors came from Seattle WA, Edmonton Alberta Canada, St. Louis MO, and Afton.

Betty brought some beautiful Indian Paintbrush flowers, risking chiggers and snakes to get them from the roadside.  This year, she intends to take some with roots and attempt to grow them in her own yard.  We both love the colorful blooms so much!

Yesterday, Sue took this snapshot of a great looking vintage pickup from Florida.  The owners are from St. Louis and will take her across all of Route 66 to California.  You can imagine the appreciative gazes they'll get in that beauty!