It was chilly out this morning and felt colder than the reported 19 degrees. There was still a dusting of new snow as well. I ran out and back to This is the Place. I like to run out there close to Christmas because the Pioneer Village is adorned for the season and early in the morning when there is no one around it feels nearly genuine. The village is a little hokey (perhaps it reminds me of a Thomas Kinkaid painting), but its setting is a convincing reminder that the world of abundance and sensory overload that we inhabit today is something new and different. There were people here long ago, including my own relatives, that endured much more to survive and make a living than we can fully appreciate today.
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