Day 25

“People on the river are happy to give.”

                                    -Proud Mary (Creedence Clearwater Revival)

We paddled 50 miles today. Back on track, baby! We have had some good luck. The people we have met in the past few days have been so kind and generous. We’ve gotten rides to the grocery store, directions when we were lost, campsite recommendations, and even home cooked meals. As we paddle closer to Hannibal, MO, there seems to be a deep understanding of what it is we’re doing and what we’ve been through.

But now it’s a rainy day in Hannibal, so we have decided to set a spell. It just so happens that there is a big hullaballoo going on in town. Hannibal is the hometown of Mr. Mark Twain. The U.S. Postal service is here to unveil the Mark Twain postage stamp. It’s a pretty big deal.

Before we know it we are face-to-face with Tom Sawyer and Becky Thatcher. Well, these were actually kids who won a contest a year ago to become the town’s ambassadors for Tom Sawyer and Becky Thatcher. They led us around town and explained to us what was going on. Before we knew it, they led us to a fence that Tom was supposed to be painting. We convinced him to let us do the painting. All it cost was a telescope and a doorknob. What a deal! I didn’t even know we HAD a doorknob. Good thing Bryan packed along icons from Mark Twain stories in case we walked into one.