44 Mayberry?

    The last title "Almost persuaded"  from the old gospel call to altar gives you some idea where our mind is going with this Stillwell dilemma.  This is the problem with having preconceived ideas or relying to much on other well intentioned information.  Now I'm beginning to feel like Patty Hearst. and I don't think Jimmy Carter is going to pardon me so I had better figure it out for myself.   Remember we drove in the park, formed an immediate opinion to stay two days, we now have been here 5 days, I look at our map of the Big Bend park here are the notes in the corner,( Sat fish fry and dance Marathon 5:30 and trail riders start arriving. Sun 11;00 Whitfords 30 minute gospel music and pot luck with trail riders, Monday  BarBQ wtih trail riders) I think I'm persuaded, we like it here.

Stillwell RV, Store and Museum

     Let me see if I can give you an example to help you understand what happened here.  The first time you tuned into Andy Griffith show,  what "if" instead of a quaint village the back drop would have been an RV park 100 miles from nowhere surrounded by rocky hard ground and cactus.  And then you met all the "characters" in the first episode without hearing their stories.  Would you have tuned in again?  That's what happened here.  Now after just a few days we have grown to love this magnificent area and marvel at the scenery.  Then we started to meet the "characters" and hear their stories. 

Caption choice?  Ruthie, Waiting for Breakfast

Or Memorizing the Equine Liability warning?      

     Here we go Stillwell RFD, 
       I promised I was going to tell you about the museum.   It is to honor the life of Hallie Stillwell, the matriarch of the Stillwell clan. At the age of  twelve she drove her families covered wagon to Alpine Texas,  later she taught school in Presidio earning extra pay because of the Poncho Villa danger.  In 1918 she married Roy Stillwell a Texas rancher, he ranched over 20,000 acres and was twice her age.  Roy died in 1948 and her skills and grit allowed her not only to survive but to succeed and become a legend.  

Correct answer: Barbie bringing breakfast!

        Her resume would include teacher, rancher newspaper columnist, author, justice of the peace and the one she preferred was ranch woman.  She was named "A Yellow Rose" by the Texas governor and her passing was covered by the New York Times when she passed away in 1997 two months short of her 100th birthday.  Do yourself a favor do some research on her life.   We will call it the Miss Hallie influence. Either directly thru her descendents or just the memories floating around this RV park.  Then we start adding the characters,  every time we stopped in the store we meet a new character behind the counter, sitting inside or on the store porch.  At first we didn't know if they were an employee, Stillwell family,  volunteer or a guest that happened to know the procedure and was helping out.  It's confusing but important to the background info.  We have already introduced Barbie, she started coming to help her best friend and co-worker Nan, and continued on thru her terminal illness.  Just a delightful fun person, it is fun to see her and Kay interact.  You have also met some of the RV guests in previous posts, each guest comes with their own unique story.  The next time you drop in the store to get a breakfast sandwich or "Nan's" burrito, ( they are wonderful, the Whitfords have even made a singing commercial "Eating Nan's burritos " that they interject into their 
segment.) you meet Keith, we found out he came from Minnesota (doesn't make him a bad person.) a couple of years ago to help out during the winters when construction shuts down in Minnesota.  I heard that when he found out about the opening at the park his phone call to Kay went something like this. "Now why and the hell would I want to come down there?   Evidently he heard something he liked, he does about everything from helping out at the store to bulldozing the horse trails. His Paradise acres and bonfires are a hit with everyone.   Wait, who is this behind the counter John or Pam and you find out they are volunteers.  John also does black smith demonstrations out by the bunkhouse and Pam has added some of her paintings to the museum.   Volunteers normally help out a few hours in exchange consideration for parking their RV's, a pretty nice trade off.   Then there is Ethelene from nearby Alpine TX she has a special relationship with the Stillwell clan and has been here for years.  
     February 8th we tried to relax and enjoy the park atmosphere.  We toured "Hallies" museum and watched some DVDs on Hallie, Nan ( her granddaughter) and ranching in the big bend area.  It is hard to

Some of the "character's playing Bocce ball?  John thought perhaps the first time it had been played here!

imagine how these pioneers lived, everything and everyone you came with could render injury or death.   The drought brought ranching to a point where the government purchased cattle and had them destroyed so they wouldnt' starve to death.  I was particularly moved by one family that was interviewed for the film.  Hard working people struggling to make a living and keep their ranch.  It takes a 100 acres to support a cow and calf.  If this were true in Minnesota my father could have only raised 3 head of cattle.  Most have to work off the ranch to keep it running, maybe someday people will appreciate where their food comes from. Makes you think.  Inquiring about the family in the film I heard that the father had been killed by a flash flood while herding cattle on his ranch.  Very sobering.  I was told that sometimes the only warning of a flash flood will be a thunder cloud on a distant mountain.  
     Evidently Nan was a great story teller, it is great they have these memories of her life.  I will share one that Nan told on herself on the DVD.  The National park had directed a lady to the Stillwell's, after calling and getting directions she found the her way there after dark, she was greeted by Nan and her step dad, evidently because of her illness (Kay mistakenly kept telling everyone she had a stroke.)  her speech, and the demeanor of her step father turned "Mary" off.  She left almost as quickly as she had arrived.  As soon as she had cell service, she called Big Bend to give them a piece of her mind.  Unfortunately she had hit redial and Nan heard a disgusted  "Why in the world did you send us to the bates motel?"  Years later she was telling her "crazy Mary" story during one of her story telling sessions and all of a sudden she pointed to a woman in the audience she said Oh my god "your that lady".  Evidently she finally got it also. 

     Sitting with us watching the DVDs was new couple to the park, Bob and Sondra had recently arrived, we found out at one time they had spent five years sailing around the world with their children, home schooling along the way with a few stops in different country's for some formal education.  Then later in life they spent 12 years living and sailing on their boat.  Until Bob jokes "Sondra tricked him into buying a house. Now they are starting to do RV travels.  People like this are so interesting..      
      I think John and Karen were concerned about our eating habits and invited us over for dinner.  Home made beef stew and fresh biscuits sitting at a real table in their mobile home, what a treat.   They have been coming here for six years, and I can finally say "I get it".
    We then gathered at Hallie's museum listening, singing and dancing to Eldon and Ann's renditions some of them  "T for Texas,  "infamous Angel" ( Nan's favorite) and of course closing as always with one of my favorite's Happy Trails.