November 24, 2021. Madison, Mississippi. Outing # 2. Flora.

Once upon a time, Flora was an important town. My friends Eleanor and Jim live close by. In the middle of the 20th Century, it was busy but then the highways improved and the small town died bit by bit. By the time we first visited Flora in 2009, it was on its last legs. There was still a few places but it was dusty and quiet. But not today. It was buzzing with activity. Chris, my Lyft drive, and I took our second outing today. He had told me about three restaurants just opening in Flora and a butcher had relocated from furthur south, so we decided to check it out. Chris picked me up at 11:00 and we drove on back roads all the way through the countryside. The weather was glorious: sunshine and 68 degrees. We drove past the driveway of Eleanor and Jim and we drove into Flora. I was astonished with the activity. There were cars all up and down the street. It was busy. It looked nothing like 2009. First we visited the butcher store. It is a family run operation and the meat comes from their family farm. I bought sausage but other folks were buying beautiful looking steaks and chops. It was an amazing modern yet old fashioned butcher shop. Next we went to a barbecue place for lunch. It was busy too. The food was delicious. Chris brought us home another route, equally as charming and always on back roads. I enjoyed the drives in the country and I enjoyed seeing Flora thriving. My second outing was another success. Next time we want to go and see Mississippi potters. Chris will look them up.