This past weekend my family and I made a quick trip to Warsaw. And of course, I brought my watercolors along too.
Warsaw, you say? Warsaw, Poland? No, no. I wish!
Warsaw, Missouri is just a few hours away from St. Mary’s, KS.
My grandad’s last sister, great Aunt Sib lives there with her daughter Sabrina. We went to to spend some time with them and get out of St. Mary’s for a bit.
It was a wonderful change of scenery and delightful bonding time with family.
Warsaw is nestled right along the Truman reservoir and Truman river, which eventually fillers into the Lake of the Ozarks. Warsaw used to be the gunstock capital of the world. Now it’s a quaint little town with little shops, walking trails, and it also has a lovely swinging suspension bridge that lets you walk from one scenic trail along the river to another.
Along both sides of the river the trees glowed in orange, red, and yellow, full of autumnal glory. Boats passing by, throwing up white spray, contrasted nicely and made for great watercolor practice.
The day was spent walking along the river, chatting by the river, lunching by the river, and painting along the river.
There was also visiting with Aunt Sib, Grandad, and Sabrina, and hearing stories of their past, and finally, eating a picnic dinner down by the river. The river definitely made our trip!
Sunday saw us up early, threading our way through the Missouri hills with a glorious, yet foggy, golden sunrise. We made it to St. Vincent de Paul’s Roman Catholic Church in plenty of time for Mass, while we soaked in the splendor of the gothic architecture.
We went out to eat after that, experiencing the depression of mask-wearing, as well as the hypocrisy of it, and learned what restaurants to not eat at the next time we graced Kansas City with our presence again.
All in all, it was a great weekend, though originally none of us were inclined to take the initial hassle of prepping and leaving town.
We were able to spend some quality time together as a family, deepen our roots, understand more of where we came from, and soak up some of the beauty of God’s creation. Deo Gratias!
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Bridget Bryan 