I conveniently tell the Jeep’s navigation to take me to a coffee shop downtown, or a remote trailhead in the middle of the desert. She is polite, accommodating, forgiving, and on point. 

Thank goodness.  

It hasn’t always been that way, has it?  

I remember traveling across the country, in the 80s, with a Rand McNally Road Atlas to map out our journey. The circles around cities and towns would pinpoint landmarks and lodging. Later, the convenience of MapQuest helped get us to our daughters’, sporting events.

Hands down, navigation is one of my favorite modern conveniences.  

This week, let’s think about Looking Back with our photography.

Here in Arizona, we find ourselves trusting modern technology to take us back in time.

In Canyon de Chelly, we are reminded of the what might appear to be a simple life. Instead, our native people, teach us of their spiritual, deliberate connection to the earth, even today. Their ancient homes, etched into the canyon walls, come with stories to perpetuate the lives of their ancestors.

And their legacy lives on.

The ghost towns invite us to walk through the remnants of Arizona’s gold rush era. And I can’t help but to think the prospectors might be overwhelmed with financial districts, let alone trusting our money to be tracked on computers.

Me? I am just happy our roadside stops look a little different, and our creature comforts, are indeed, comfortable.

The tiny towns, on the outskirts of our cities, like Lowell, Arizona often drop us into a time warp. This once-upon-a-time, mining town, now has the feel of an abandoned movie set, and is a great place to stumble across if you want to reminisce about life in the 50s. I guess we could talk about the price of gas in the good ole days but….

“Take it easy,…”

– Eagles

These days, our fancy cars drive on roads that were once necessary byways, and have become scenic drives.

And we move along….with nudges of progression.

Our manmade watering holes seem to be commonplace and are mere conveniences to lavish homes.

And we tell our stories through social media outlets, and/or blogs.

I guess that isn’t new, is it?

It just looks a little different than it used to.

Wind Kisses, Donna