Anyplace is Fine

​Melissa and I celebrated our anniversary in Scotland this year. It reminded me of a story from a decade ago. 
Melissa and I had planned a full day, so we decided to go to the earlier Mass at 8a.m.  After church, we went to Second Street Cafe, for breakfast.  
Pulling into the parking lot between Bailey's Office Supply and Hotel Ottumwa, we took the last space available; a diagonal space between two sedans.
Melissa has always been methodical in her protocol for disembarking the vehicle...I mean to say she's slow to exit.  I recalled advice I got from her friend, Nicole Johnson, years ago when Melissa and I first started dating: "Don't even open your door, until Melissa has one foot out of the car!" Although Nicole could have advised me to wait until Melissa has two feet out, I've learned to adjust.
I got out of the car too early. While waiting for her outside, I crouched down behind my car.  When Melissa finally came around the end of the car, I jumped up, lunging toward her waving my hands in the air like a monster, "Raaarrrhhh!!!"  I screamed.
"You're such a dork,” she said.
"Maybe," I conceded, "but you jumped."  We had a good laugh over that, then went inside to eat.
We talked about our wonderful day, the day before - it was our anniversary. Melissa and I celebrated the day in Van Buren County.   
We had lunch at the Bonaparte Retreat, in the old grist mill on the edge of the Des Moines River.  After lunch, we stopped by Rhea Huddleston's house. our friend was moving her antique shop and Addie May Fudge business to a new building.  It was fun to catch up with Rhea, and see the progress they had made restoring their classic Victorian country home.
On the way home, we visited a few shops in Bentonsport, and the flea market vendors where Melissa found an antique cast iron owl lantern.  She really liked it, but I was firm as we would be moving to a new state soon. ”We don't need any more stuff to move to Minnesota, especially a cast iron trinket.” But, having fallen in love with the owl, Melissa had already settled on a name.
After I put Oliver the Owl, along with a few pumpkins and gourds in the car, we went on to Keosauqua.  The small southeast Iowa town still holds many fond memories from my youth. It still seems  weird not having the metal curly slide in the town’s park, and the old iron trestle bridge spanning the Des Moines River has since been replaced with a boring modern concrete bridge.
Although the fall colors had not come in yet, it was fun to drive around the Villages of Van Buren County again.  Still, Melissa and I agreed, the northwoods of Minnesota with peaking fall colors, was where we wished we could have celebrated our anniversary.
Our conversation turned to where we were six years ago, prior to that morning.  We were having breakfast at the Northern Rail Traincar Inn, a really neat place.  
The rooms are built in old railroad boxcars sitting on sections of real train tracks.  Imagine an old-fashioned train depot with the roof that covers about half of each railcar to protect train passengers from the elements of weather.  This is what the Inn looks like.  When you walk down the corridor, you feel like you're on the platform of a train station, with cars on both sides.
When planning our wedding, we had called the manager of the inn. “We’d like to rent all 17 rooms for our family, on our wedding weekend.” At first Mary Alice was understandably skeptical, wondering if we would fill all the rooms. “Yes,” I assured her. We’ll rent all your rooms and the rest of my family will stay at the motel in Two Harbors.” (I come from a very large family.) In the end, they accommodated us nicely with all of their rooms.
Because ours was a destination wedding, we opted for a family reunion/party at the inn, rather than a traditional rehearsal dinner for just the wedding party. Cindy, the Rail Car Inn host, provided us with a bonfire.  Tents were set up to serve food and beverages.   We had the whole place to ourselves and it was an amazing night.   When the rains came, we moved the party indoors to the lobby, but Melissa and I seized the opportunity to have a special dance in the pouring rain.
After our wedding reception the following evening, at Glensheen Mansion in Duluth, the festivities continued at the Northern Railcar Inn.  
The morning after our wedding, our family gathered sporadically in the breakfast area.  Many of the family opted to venture out, visiting places like Split Rock Lighthouse, Gooseberry Falls, The Cross River Falls, or just drive the northwoods country roads taking in the amazing fall foliage.
As we continued to reminisce about that very special time in the northwoods, we agreed that was where we really wanted to be for our next anniversary - the perfect place. Then we made plans to travel north the following week before the colorful leaves fell in the autumn winds.
The more we talked, as I looked across the table at my bride, the more I realized, I was already in the perfect place for our anniversary.  I was with the most beautiful, amazing woman - my wife, my partner and my best friend.
From Minnesota to Iowa, Scotland to Nova Scotia, Ontario to the Carolinas, Melissa and I have celebrated our anniversaries in some very special places. But the most special place yet, is wherever we are. Any place is just fine...as long as we are there together.