The Valley

FOR NINE YEARS my parents loaded-up their vehicle about the third week of October, and headed south until about the second week of April. It was a period of approximately five and a half months. They traveled more than a thousand miles from their home in mid-Missouri to a winter home in The Valley - the Rio Grande Valley of Texas. They became "snowbirds" who delighted in escaping the harsh winters which were so prevalent in the Midwest. For them, and for many others like them, The Valley was an ideal leisure destination for an extended period of time.
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Harlingen was the location of choice for mom and dad's first winter in The Valley. The next eight winters they spent in Weslaco. In each of the nine years, my folks found good places to stay in attractive mobile home parks. And, it seemed as though their housing accommodations were better every year.

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During each of those nine years, my wife and I were able to make a trip to The Valley for a visit. At that time both of us were still full-time professionals working in higher education. However, it was not too difficult to find enough days for the journey south - either at Thanksgiving break, Christmas - New Year's break, or spring break.
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Because of our annual visits, we came to more fully understand why my parents enjoyed spending their winters in The Valley so much. Instead of mostly cold, cloudy, and wintry days, they were often in short sleeves sipping iced tea under palm trees. Instead of looking at brown leaves and dead flowers, they were looking at colorful blossoms and green plants as they put on sun screen and ate fresh oranges or grapefruit. The Valley truly became my parents second home: they had friends; they found a good church; they had places to go; and they had many things to do to keep them busy.

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My wife and I were thrilled that mom and dad wanted to spend their winters in the south. Not only did it give us a great spot for a short vacation, but much more important was what it did for them. Dad never had to shovel snow during those nine years. Neither of them had to worry about falling on ice-covered sidewalks or streets. And, perhaps best of all, it kept them young - young at heart and young in spirit!

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Our time in The Valley with my folks was always one of the highlights of the year for us. We visited, we played games, we found great places to eat, we met their friends, and we became very familiar with their winter communities. Sightseeing gave us the opportunity to experience the surrounding areas which provided an added plus to our visits. We traveled the length of the lower Valley more than once, and explored many places of interest. Some of these places included McAllen, Brownsville, Edinburg, Rio Grande City, Mission, San Benito, Mercedes, Pharr, Port Isabel, and South Padre Island.

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There were a couple of highlights for us. First, the Mexican city of Nuevo Progreso was only four miles from my parents home in Weslaco. We crossed the border on most every Valley vacation and enjoyed the atmosphere, the food, and the shopping! Another highlight was visiting the Bentsen-Rio Grande Valley State Park near Mission. A couple of special delights for us always included ice cream at Hygeia Dairy and pastries at Shipley Do-nuts. In addition, going to South Padre Island was a totally enjoyable pleasure on every one of our journeys to The Valley.

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My parents had wonderful long-term leisure experiences in south Texas. During our first or second visit there, my wife and I made a decision concerning the future. We too - in our own retirement - were going to try-out the idea of spending our winters in a warmer climate. And, there's no doubt whatsoever, the biggest factor in bringing us to that conclusion was the time we spent in The Valley!

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-- Port Isabel, Texas - the gateway to South Padre Island - is shown in the photo above.