Life looping happens when we least expect it.
This story begins a few years ago when I attended one of my high school reunions. Interesting, I found myself meeting and visiting with people who I did not know in high school. Our graduation class was quite large and therefore our friends were those in the organization we joined such as the drill team, pep squad, band, etc. At the reunion I meet and visited with Pat. She became an art teacher, like me, and now lives in Dripping Springs. We have met for lunch, shopped and have kept in touch. In reading one of my past blogs she called to see if she, her husband and daughter could come for Topaz weekend.
Pat arrived on Friday and she and I went to the wine bar to visit with local friends and the Geology Grad students from Rice University. Saturday her husband Gene and daughter Kelly arrived and quickly joined the boot clad, pick toting mob of 90+ gems, mineral and rock hunters. At one of the local ranches they discovered beautiful quartz of white and rose, and various other rocks.
An excited Pat shared, “We picked, shoveled and sifted in and around the Comanche Creek streams for some 2 or more hours. There were lots of photographers ready to capture the granite rock formations, bluebonnets and countryside of Mason. Many brought in their rock finds back to Mason to verify if they had actually found a topaz. We were not one of the lucky ones but had riches of quartz beyond our wildest dreams. Knowing that we would be tired, we purchased a casserole from GOOD TO GO in Mason and after a short time headed back to the Sand Stone Wine Bar to hear the jamming tunes of James Author Martinez and accompanying musicians. The fiddler was smoking hot after his rendition of “The Orange Blossom Special” and the classical Mexican guitar player lent his excellent hand to compliment the band.”
Sunday morning we took off to Fly Gap Road to check out some additional minerals and rocks. Kelly found the KING OF THE QUARTZ and it took all three of us to put it in the back of the truck. Kelly is still smiling on this find! The country side is beautiful. This year because of the rain we have received in 2012 there are more shades and values of green and there are fields of just yellow and white flowers. The bluebonnets add a pop of contrast color to the breath taking canvas set before you. You can even see patches of bluebonnets growing up sides of hills and rock mounds.
After this rock adventure Kelly, Pat and I went to Gooch Cemetery. Pat had mentioned that she had a Great Grandfather that she thought was buried in one of Mason’s oldest cemetery. We started to look for the LESLIE family. Not only did we find her Great Grandfather but we found some 25 other Leslie relations. The oldest plot was William Lowry Leslie a PVT in the Confederate States Army Calvary from Tennessee. After the Civil War he must have stayed here in the Mason area. And his family grew. Somewhere along the family line, a Leslie moved to Houston, Pat was born, she and I went to the same high school, as adults meet at a reunion, came for a visit to hunt topaz, and found herself doing rubbings from various gravestones of her many ancestors…..the Life Loop came together.
Leslie Family roots in Mason Texas.
When life nudges you in a direction, don’t ask a lot of questions, go with the flow….you just might be on a LIFE LOOP! Have fun.
Are you connected to Mason in some way? Come find out!