Goodnight John Boy

In the seemingly obscure Charlottesville, Virginia, Eowyn and I found ourselves surrounded by the beauty of the Blue Ridge Mts. and the uniformed eye candy of Jason and his fellow JAG officers in attendance at a week-long training featuring such scintillating topics as Fiscal Law. The region offers prolific wineries and historically architectural prodigy. Fortunately, Eowyn shares my affinity for wine tastings and President’s homes, as they are the tourist allure du jour. However, one little known destination lies within minutes of the city limits and conjures sentiments of simpler (more familial) days gone by: The Walton Family Museum. In truth, this iconic testament to the last sex-less television drama possesses an ironically prosaic pretense, featuring laminated newspaper articles tacked precariously to fatigued bulletin boards. Naturally, the “curator” was a darling silver-haired Golden Girl’s type who welcomed us with antebellum hospitality, as though mint juleps might be offered at the close of our self-guided tour. When our (abbreviated) tour was over, I could have used a mint julep: Eowyn is museum kryptonite. Admittedly, I should have anticipated her desire to touch the untouchable and traverse past the sacred roped off exhibits. Clearly, I need to lower my expectations. As we exited the humble schoolhouse turned museum, Eowyn dropped her purse (a new appendage) in the dusty gravel and nearly took flight, racing towards…a liberated sheep. I suppose it is par for the proverbial Walton course that two random domesticated sheep should be wandering idly through the parking lot and yet I was still surprised. Eowyn wasn’t. She behaved as though she was reunited with a long-lost lamb friend and kept saying “Bah Bah Bah.” Her morning had been a realized dream. I am confident that John Boy was smiling upon her (and the sheep). So, if you ever find yourself in Charlottesville, VA, you should visit a little converted schoolhouse on Rockfish River Drive and enjoy the company of Walton’s lore and their liberated sheep.