Thursday's Highway Treasure 04-28-16

Copyright 2016 AJ Horton

Hello and happy Thursday.  Today I had a really long drive to and from work.  It was dark when I left this morning, and cloudy, rainy and sunny on the way home.  I've noticed many times the wildflowers growing along the highways through the years and always thought, "One day I'm going to stop and take some pictures of those flowers."  Well, today was the day.  This little flower looks almost like tissue paper close up.  It was hard to get a decently sharp picture as the cars and 18 wheelers caused a lot of wind for these delicate flowers.  There were only 2 or 3 of the white ones in the whole crowd.

The beautiful flowers along the Highway are due to the Highway Beautification Act, signed by President Lyndon B. Johnson in October, 1965.  President Johnson's wife, Lady Bird, pushed to beautify America's landscapes.  The First Lady wanted billboards and junk yards gone from the landscapes and replaced with trees, flowers, green spaces and parks.  That seems reasonable to me.  I am not about politics on my blog, but if you'd like to read about that process with this Act, please go to https://www.fhwa.dot.gov/infrastructure/beauty.cfm.  The next year the First Lady issued a series of stamps called "Plant for a More Beautiful America" .  You can read more about the stamps at https://www.uspsconnection.com/cc_site/1990/10/22/president-johnson-signs-the-highway-beautification-act/

We should plan and plant a more beautiful America.  We need our clean water and beautiful landscapes and our sustainable farms and livestock.  We need to enjoy and be stewards to this great land we've been given.  I believe I am fortunate and blessed to live in this great country, and I, for one, agree with First Lady Lady Bird Johnson.  When I was growing up, there was a commercial showcasing an owl that said, "Give a Hoot, Don't Pollute."  We need to teach that to our future generations.

I hope you had a wonderful Thursday.  If you drove today, I hope you saw something pretty on your drive.  Thank you for looking.  See you tomorrow.