Mike Edmisten Follower of Jesus. Husband of Nicki. Father of Ryan & Brock. Communicator of the Word.

We had a "fair" time

Last week my family visited the annual Brown County Fair. There is just something special about that event for us. Maybe it's seeing old friends. Since Nicki and I were in the same class in Georgetown, the fair is like an annual class reunion. We saw classmates who still live in Georgetown and classmates who live as far away as Oklahoma City. Everybody is looking a little bit older now. I'm sure they were all surprised to see that Nicki and I haven't changed a bit.

Maybe the fair is special because we're "country folk" at heart. I live in suburbia now, but my heart still longs for the country. Strapping on my dirty work boots, walking through the barns, seeing the animals, looking at tractors that are as big as a house, listening to Joe Diffie sing classic country songs…it made Nicki and me feel right at home. We got so nostalgic about our country roots that we both left the fair with John Deere shirts. Oh yeah!

Maybe the fair is special because of the food. The corn dogs, funnel cakes, pork tenderloin and ribeye sandwiches were all out of this world. I made the mistake of getting on our bathroom scales this morning. Ouch.

But mostly, the fair was special this year because I got to see it through my little boy's eyes. This is the first time Ryan has really experienced an event like this. It was amazing to watch his eyes light up and to listen to him talk excitedly about the animals, to watch him nervously pet a cow, and to see him smile as he rode the kiddie rides. He even got into the tractor pulls. He was totally into the noise, smoke, and dirt that are part of every tractor pull. We're living in the suburbs, but my boy may still be a redneck!

Needless to say, I left this year's Brown County Fair with some wonderful memories…and we didn't have to fly hundreds of miles and spend thousands of dollars to make those memories. The memories were made in a very simple, non-flashy setting. A few farm animals, some simple food, some old friends, and a couple of outdated kiddie rides made for some fantastic memories.

Sometimes we go overboard. Sometimes we make things more extravagant than is necessary. This year's fair reminded me that there is beauty in simplicity.

I wish you "simple memories."