One of my fellow writers grew up in Great Falls, Montana, a city about 140 miles from the Rocky Mountain Front. Contrary to Chicago’s claim, Great Falls is one of the windiest city in the US, with average speeds above thirty miles an hour. (The actual windiest city in Montana is Livingston.) Great Falls lies on the open plains, and chinook winds from Canada drive across the front and east.
Space and sky are all around you in that city.
In Missoula, she feels constricted. There’s still plenty of sky, but mountains ring the city’s valley, and the skies are often gray as rain skips from mountain top to mountain top around us.
The heroine in my upcoming Christmas novel, Montana Christmas Magic, coming in December, feels the same way. After growing up in the fictionalized town of Sweet Grass, Montana, midway between east and west across the state, Missoula feels closed in.
The hero of the story is from New York, a fine place to live if you grow up there, but anathema to a girl from the plains.
I was reminded of this when I went to eastern Pennsylvania to visit my son and his family. First of all, Montana has a little over one million people on about 147,000 square miles. Pennsylvania has almost 13 million people on about 46,000 square miles.
So I went from a place that has about 7 people (and lots of cows, deer, etc.) to a place that has about 272 people per square mile (and a few deer and cows).
Crowded!
Where we live changes our perspectives on things. My granddaughter asked me, “Aren’t you afraid living with all those wild animals?” after I told her about the nightly deer visitations, the fox, and the wolf my husband has seen dashing through the yard.
Truly, the only time I get nervous is when we tent camp–but we’re pretty bear aware. The crowds of people, however, ramp up my anxiety level. Odd, because I spent the first 23 years of my life on the east coast.
In a lot of my stories, I bring together people who wouldn’t ordinarily meet. Our country is, unfortunately, so divided right now, that it’s easy to create conflict when people come from different backgrounds. The nice part for me, is I get to guide the conversation so understanding, if not agreement at some level, occurs.
And sometimes, the two people fall in love.
My hope is when you’re done with a book, you’ll be satisfied. My greater prayer is you’ll be inspired to reach out to someone who is a little different from you and seek common ground.
“Seek ye first to understand …”
That is the greatest form of love there can be.
#TravelTuesday
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