Welcome back to Tire Mom! As I drove across the desert toward New Mexico, I had the uncanny sense that I could see farther than I had anywhere else. Dry air (and the desert is the driest of the dry) is clearer than humid air because water vapor causes refraction of light.

Clayton and I took our family on many a camping trip on the desert, and there was always something new to learn. Much of it we gleaned from visiting National Parks, so I couldn’t drive through that marvelous desert area without visiting the Petroglyph National Monument. As you can tell from the name, the place displays amazingly intricate designs and symbols that were carved into the volcanic rock between 400 and 700 years ago. That is of course long before American became a nation. The artists were Native Americans and Spanish settlers who had no idea their work would be protected as one of the largest petroglyph sites in North America. The images are a valuable record of cultural expression and spiritual beliefs. It is truly a landscape of early art.

Mia, Tire Mom #42, was every bit as impressive. She was headed off to school and was responsible enough to check her tires before she set out. She did need news ones, and being a huge supporter of education, I was happy to supply her with a set. She could then use that saved-up money to buy books and supplies and all those things you need when the school years starts. I left New Mexico a happy woman.

If you want to post a comment – and surely you do – will you share a time when art – of any era – had a significant effect on you? Whether it was seeing a Picasso display at the Art Institute of Chicago or gazing at your child’s first drawing, tell us why it was so profound for you. We can’t wait to hear.

Stay safe,

Diana Hubner