Kentucky Memories that will Sparkle Forever

An entry in Wikipedia reads:

"The Penick Family (1820-1920) were wealthy plantation owners in Todd C0unty, Kentucky, in the United States.

The Penick family amassed a great amount of land in the Allensville, Kentucky area of around 5,000 acres during the beight of their farming operaions. The plantation was lost in the 1920's when farming operations ceased due to lack of interest by the families.

The Plenick family plantation homes still exist on Allensville Road in Todd County, Kentucky. The homes are of wood-frame in the mid-19th century style, known as the transitioning phase between Federal and Greek Revival.

Family linkages are to that of the Mary Todd family, for which Todd County is named.

What is Real

As the plane was soon to leave Louisville and carry us home to Utah I reflected on my extraordinary experience. The Penicks were REAL people--not just names in archives, or lines on ledger books, nor distant branches on a family tree. They had become real. They had become at last, my own Kentucky family. Now I can never forget them, nor leave them behind. The work has just begun.

Long layover in Chicago

We had a nearly 9 hour layover in Chicago. I watched the people pass by until I fell fast asleep despite the less than hospitable accomodations.

The voyage Home

Almost as soon as the adventure started it was nearly over. Just time enough at the airport to pick out a travel souvenir. I selected a horse. It's the cliche that Kentucky is famous for its racing horses, but I chose one that reflected my fantasy Penick adventure.

A last reflection

The Kentucky fences are everywhere. They divide people's property, wind here and there to separate vast spaces, countrysides, estate homes or backyards in trailer parks. They seemed to also symbolize connection: that the divisions they guarded were really only markers of where things and people meet--- where lives are lived as friends, neighbors and family.

Theme revisited: The Fences of Kentucky

Abraham Lincoln Slept Here

Reluctantly we were leaving behind my beloved Penicks in Greensberg. On the way back to Louisville we stopped at the birthplace of Abraham Lincoln. We were too late to take a tour and the day was nearly at a close.