Tag Archives: vandalism

Graffiti At Moonville

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Buried deep in the hills of Vinton County, Ohio you’ll find an abandoned railroad tunnel that was once part of the B&O Railroad. Today it’s the centerpiece of the Moonville Rail Trail and a destination for both ghost hunters and graffiti artists.

This is public property and an amazing historic site that people insist on vandalizing with their paint cans. Between that and the locks people attach to one of the bridges that volunteers worked years to build , a trip here is both a fun adventure and little irritating.

Why do people insist on leaving their mark on what is not theirs?

This time, though, the graffiti was actual art.

I was kind of impressed that someone could do all this with a spray can.

I still don’t condone spray paint on property where the owners say “please don’t” but I do wish that there were more public spaces where folks like this could show off their skills.

Rapid City, South Dakota has an alley where graffiti artists can show off their art once they apply for a permit from the city. It’s pretty cool.

St. Joseph Church of Aztec

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Before leaving Aztec, New Mexico, we circled back to a church at the edge of town that I had admired on the way in.

St. Joseph Church was built in 1946 and is positively charming. It’s cheerful and brightly decorated with beautiful pots of flowers.

I was just snapping a couple of cell phone pictures when a sedan stopped in the street and blew the horn.

The elderly driver of this car rolled down the window to ask if I was ok. I told her that I just liked the church and she thanked me. She attends this church and told me about how beautiful it is inside. She invited me to attend a service someday and shared stories about the kindness shown to her by the congregation during recent times of trouble.

She shared about her upcoming visit with her son who nearly died of Covid and about her boyfriend who recently passed away.

She was delightful and I was touched by her concern.

I shared with her a little about the road trip I was on with my friend and she asked about Ohio. She wished us a safe journey and promised to pray for our safe return to our respective homes.

Later I learned that her beautiful church has been vandalized a few times in the last year. I imagine she was actually concerned about her house of worship and the intentions of a stranger. You can read a story about the vandalism here.

It’s ridiculous that this is a worry but I’m always glad for those good Samaritans who keep their eyes peeled for potential trouble. The world could use more people like that.