The famous Loveless biscuit. YUM!

444 miles.

All free from traffic lights, construction zones, 18-wheelers, billboards, hurried motorists and cheesy tourist stops. The Natchez Trace is a thread in America’s history that has stories to recollect and lessons to learn that we can’t learn amidst distraction.

Just as the leaves flutter to the side of the road as we drive by, so do our cares and worries. It’s wonderful to escape the distractions, like a GPS talking its way to your destination, and decisions, like whether Cracker Barrel or Bob Evans would be best for breakfast.

Our fall journey didn’t begin this stress-free. We left home, pulled onto Interstate 24 and were immediately met by loud billboards, Sunday drivers in the HOV lane, concrete walls, and 18-wheelers whipping the little RV around like a butterfly in a tornado. As if the interstate wasn’t a wild enough ride, next came Old Hickory Blvd. Never before had I realized how hilly OHB was and most of those hills have red lights. Somewhere there’s a guy with a hidden camera that saw us coming and changed the light to yellow and quickly to red just as we would approach. We discovered that OHB in an RV is almost as exciting as the Wabash Cannonball at Opryland.

About mile 400 down the Trace, I began to realize that our journey is much like our Christian walk. Life has its 18 wheelers that whip us to shreds and its hills that force us to stop on a dime. The Lord doesn’t promise that our time here on Earth is care-free rather it’s the opposite and we should guard against the distractions of this life. When we do, we will be able to see a clearer path. A path that’s pure with unobstructed views of Him and His creation.

The Natchez Trace has many stories to tell, some heroic, some tragic but stories none the less about legacies that were left behind.