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Wednesday, September 24, 2014

Andrew Jackson State Park - The Wedding Cake and the Museum

We transported out of Wonderland through some portal or other at Landsford Canal State Park and travelled on.

It was almost 5:00 when we pulled into the parking area of Andrew Jackson State Park.  Again we felt underdressed.  A wedding party had assembled at the large shelter just beside our family minivan.  What a beautiful idea.  The park was gorgeous now int he first throes of spring.  The reception was already set up picnic style outside the shelter and the shelter itself was adorned with white garland. The park's trees and flowers complimented the wedding party's own boquets.

We quietly (as quietly as a family of six can) spilled from our van and made for the park office to obtain our stamp.  Anchor and Little Legs stamped our outsider page while I attempted to keep Ben from crashing the wedding- more to the point- the wedding cake.

Proximity was a problem as Ben kept dragging me closer to the delicate, decodent and no doubt delicious cake.  A quick scan revealed historic buildings and a museum.  This was a great time to explore the history of Andrew Jackson State Park and to pray that the wedding guests would quickly consume all of the cake.

Thankfully, the museum had not locked up for the evening.  The rangers and intrepreters take their task of sharing their park's story very seriously and even the latest visitors are warmly welcomed.

I continue to be amazed at the overall quality of the exhibits at the the state park museums.  Andrew Jackson State Park celebrates the early life of the former frontiersman, soldier, politician and president.  The exhibit opens by depicting what Andrew Jackson's early home might have looked like in the backcountry of the new frontier.  We saw the orner with washing implements, the simple but beautiful blanket chest and then explored the combination kitchen/dining/bed/living room.  Little Legs was particularly intrigued by the rope bed.  The ranger saw the young girl's interest and fueled it.  "Go ahead," the ranger instructed.  "You can sit on it."  Little Legs was amazed.  Her eyes widened as she carefully sat upon the side of the bed.  That was the moment frontier life came alive to this little girl.  Through the exhibit and especially through the ranger's watchful and kind eyes, Little Legs came to understand the meaness of frontier life and the truth behind the adage, "Sleep Tight; Don't Let the Bed Bugs Bite."

It takes authentic hands on exhibits like those at Andrew Jackson to convey the meaning of histoic living conditions to these little ones.  Little Legs slept in a plush bed in the company of a managerie of plush bears, kittens and bunniess.  This clean but sparse room was so different and must be shown and experienced to be believed by modern day children.  I loved seeing the moment of understanding as she sat on the rope bedside and scanned the room.

Ben however was not happy.  His mind had not let go of the image of wedding cake and he was not inclined to tarry here at the museum when cake was so very near.  To make matters worse, there was fake food on the replica of the Jackson's table.  While the repast displayed would have made a good meal in Jackson's time, it served as no real comparison to wedding cake.  We would have to leave the musueum and visit a different day.  We would come back to more fully explore the videos, the uniforms and the artifacts regarding Jackson's later years.  But that was an option and so a miracle.  The museum itself was free.  The park required a $2 per person admission fee but even that was covered wthen we bought our park passport which guarenteed admission to all 47 state parks.

A fantastic aspect of the parks is the freedom it allows its guests.  Ben's behavioral difficulties usually require us to avoid places wehre we feel he may have a meltdown.  If he were too upset, we would have to take him out forfeiting our admission cost.  The parks offer exceptional people the opportunity to vieew exceptional exhibits on their own terms.  If Ben was having a difficult time, we do as much as he can stand and then we regroup and plan another visit for another day.

The ranger smiled a reassuring smile at our son and told us we were welcome anytime.

We left the museum and spied the wedding.  The reception was underway with cake and karioke.  Ben was watchful.  We knew it would be difficult to get him to the van to leave without him breaking away to try some cake.  Luckily, Andrew Jackson has a set of trails to explore and there was no better time.  A walk in the woods and another beside the pond passed the time.  Our adventure hat Andrew Jackson had ended with no know wedding cake calamaties.  Off to Lake Wateree.

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