My City June 2022

MYREALITY

There’s No Place Like Home BY VERA HOGAN W hen Americans vacation in foreign coun tries, they look forward to experiencing everything they can’t see and do at home. ey enjoy learning about new cultures, how the natives of that country live, the food they eat, their style of dress, entertainment and leisure time activities. But what about when they come here ? I have a wonderful uncle who lives in Germany. He’s only a few years older than me, so he’s more like the brother I never had. A few years ago, he came to visit my family in Fenton with his adult daughter, my cousin. ey loved it here, but were surprised by a few things. One thing we wanted to do during their visit was take them to Frankenmuth. I think everyone is excited about doing this with their German visitors. Don’t get me wrong – I love Fran kenmuth; but when we pointed out all the German fare on the restaurant menu, my uncle politely declined and ordered a steak and baked potato. “I eat German food at home every day,” he ex plained. e same was true for everything else there – the music, gift shop oŒerings. ey did think it was a “cute” town, though. We took them to several attractions, which they loved, including the Detroit Zoo. We oŒered to take them to places up north, like the bridge and the island. ey opted to stick around Fenton, however, and see how we live. One of the things they enjoyed was our local classic car shows. At the cruise to Battle Alley in Holly, my cousin literally drooled over a Shelby Mustang. She was over the moon when the owner (a cute young guy about her age) asked if she wanted a photo of the two of them standing by his car. I’ve never seen cheeks so red! ey enjoyed concerts in the park, and several trips to area lakes and parks. But what they really liked the most was shop ping – shopping at the malls, Birch Run Outlets, many local mom-and-pop shops … and Walmart. ey have Walmart in Germany, but not like the super-huge stores we have here.

One day, my husband said he was “kidnapping” my uncle. ey were gone for hours. I was worried, because my husband spoke zero German, and my uncle only knew a little English. ey spent those hours at Home Depot – my uncle loved it! He could not get over that there was such a store. I still can’t gure out how they bonded and communicated so well. Even though my husband is gone now, my uncle still calls him his “best friend in America.” At the end of each day after dinner, my uncle and cousin set out to enjoy another favorite activity, spazieren (a leisure ly walk) in Fenton. ey live in a country of castles, cathe drals, homes and other structures that are hundreds of years old, but were in awe of the historic homes in and around Dibbleville. ey took hundreds of photos home with them. Traveling to faraway places is great, but seeing all that we have right here through my European family’s eyes reminded me that there really is no place like home. ® Recently retired, Vera Hogan is a 20-year veter an of the newspaper business, having served both Fenton and Flint area publications. During those years, she was a reporter, associate editor, editor, web content editor and columnist. Her popular columns have earned her multiple state awards. She resides in the City of Fenton. Email verahogan@hotmail.com.

Daria Pneva / stock.adobe.com

90

MYCITYMAG.COM