There is a wonderful little piece of magic that exists in the tiny remnants of a village known as Volland. It is a lingering dash of white settler history beside the railroad track in Wabaunsee County. The old brick general store building was saved, restored and repurposed.
The Volland Store now offers a variety of activities - art shows, poetry reading, and activities like learning the function and history of such things as root cellars and big barns, then touring various locations. I have purchased locally harvested honey and hand-made soap there. It is a fine building, reimagined for the twenty-first century, located in a beautiful little hollow in the emerald green of the Kansas Flint Hills.
While checking the Volland Store website to see what might be happening, I discovered a mystery called NuPenny. People were invited to: "Bring your lawn chair and a picnic –
Visit with neighbors and make new friends as you wait for sunset. Watch NuPenny emerge as light fades and darkness falls."
I was intrigued! What did this mysterious contraption do? Play fantastical music? Offer a cosmic light show? I HAD to go see it for myself.
Soooooooooooo...
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I dragged my neighbor here... |
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to see this. |
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but NuPenny does only this. |
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Of course, the whole point was to be there for this - a lovely Kansas sunset, which both of us see every single evening - she from her horse barn and me from my front porch. |
WELP!
(The Volland Store follow this link for more information.)