Although I went to law school in Kansas, chose to stay here after graduation, and consider myself a Jayhawk over a Hawkeye (I've never even wanted to be a Cyclone), most everyone knows that my heart belongs to my home state: Iowa. I take a lot of heat for my Iowa pride; I can't tell you the number of texts and messages I've received from my Kansas friends telling them they're driving through Iowa and how much it they "love it". (I particularly remember a voicemail from Chris and Matt a couple of years ago. Thanks guys....) The number of Iowa jokes I've heard is off the charts and more are added to the list everyday.
But I defend my state as vehamentily as possible. There is no better place to get sweet corn, or attend a state fair, or just enjoy a beautiful sunrise. We get both the snow and the sun, the rain and the heat. We know we don't have everything: there are no major leage sports teams in Iowa, no mountains, and no oceans, but we certainly have a sense of humor. We're good, hard-working people who make the heartland of America what it is who represent (at least in my humble opinion) a lot of what is good in this country. And there is no denying, as this picture illustrates, that that the Hawkeye state can be pretty darn beautiful.
I suspect that someday I'll end up living back in my home state. Until that day comes, I'll keep taking pictures like these as I traverse I-35, and keeping sunsets like these in my memories.
