H. Roe Bartle Scout Reservation-The Point

Down in Osceola, Missouri which is about 2 hours south of Kansas City there is a Boy Scout Camp that has the hearts of many scouters.  Although it is not in Osceola and Osceola is not even the closest town, Iconium, Missouri has that pleasure. Iconium is such a small town that they do not have their own post office and get the mail delivered from Osceola. The scout is secluded which is what you want when you are camping. There is nothing like being on your own and feel like civilization is miles away. It lets you get away from everything and truly relax. The best place to sit and think and enjoy a beautiful view is most commonly known as The Point.

The Point is a bluff looking over the Truman Reservoir surrounded by woods. It is the heart of the Boy Scout camp. Every scout visits the point at least once every time they visit the reservation. Once you enter a troop in the Kansas City Area you hear about the point and its wonders. The point is uniquely surrounded by cedar trees while the rest of the woods are primarily filled with oak trees. It is a place of silence and reflection. There are not any “do not talk” signs however there is a known rule that the point is a place of quiet reflection. I will visit the point multiple times a year to go sit on the rocks or log and reflect on my life. People have great respect for this area. You never see any trash on the ground; people come and leave without leaving any sign that they have visited the area. The respect for the place starts as soon as the scout enters into Boy Scouts, the older scouts teach the younger scouts about The Point and its purpose. The point may be a place however it feels it is a treasure that gets pasted down from generations to generations of Boy Scouts.

Kansas City Plaza

            The Kansas City Plaza is not too far from downtown Kansas City. Some would say it is the nicest part of Kansas City. It has some amazing architecture and the home of some of the fountains in which Kansas City is known for. The big summer attraction is the fountains. Many people will come to the plaza just to see the fountains full. They will throw coins into the fountain and make a wish. Many people will go to the fountains and take pictures near them either wedding and engagement photos or senior pictures. I do not visit the plaza very often because the plaza is extremely expensive but on occasion I will pass through and watch the fountains and the people around to fountains. It is interesting to see the fountains can be a birth place of relationships and a place to meet to rekindle a relationship. The major attraction during the winter is the Plaza Christmas Lights. They are strung up throughout the plaza and there is a big gather when they turn on the lights on Thanksgiving. I have known people who will just visit the plaza to see the lights. It is another thing Kansas City is very proud of in the plaza.

The plaza is a shopping center and a country club. It is official name is the Kansas City Country Club Plaza. The tennis courts nearby are the only sign of it being a country club that I have ever noticed. Many people in the Kansas City area will come to the plaza to do their high end shopping and fine dining. It is the place where the most expensive and fanciest restaurants in the Kansas City area are located. Many high scholars will go to the plaza to have dinner before prom. I personally went to dinner before my senior prom and ate at an Italian restaurant and my brother, who is over two years older than I am, went to the plaza for dinner before his senior prom. The plaza to me is the fancy part of town. I do not visit it very often but every now and then when I feel like dressing up and going out I will make a trip to the Kansas City Plaza.

P.S. I know that this post is late and I will not be getting credit for it but I feel like I should create this post anyways just to make sure I have the same amount of posts as everyone else.

Jacob L. Loose Park

            In Kansas City not to far from the Kansas City Plaza (which will probably be another blog posting) there is a beautiful park that stretches 75-acres called Loose Park. An historic battle in the civil war took place where the park is located now (http://www.kcmo.org/CKCMO/Depts/ParksandRecreation/LoosePark/index.htm check here for more history and general information about the park). While I was growing up I visited this park multiple times a year. There is a little pond where I remember feeding the ducks with bread I brought from home. A single day at the park brings many different events. Many high school seniors will take there senior photos at the park. People gather at the park for family reunions or just to meet up with an old friend. I would go to Loose Park just to play and be outside with my family. I have even at times seen weddings take place in the rose garden. The rose garden might be the only part of the park I visit every time I go to the park. It is a must see part of Kansas City when the flowers are in bloom. Before I could even remember my great uncle’s ashes were spread across the rose garden (I believe it is illegal to do that now but I believe at the time it was not but I am not certain for sure). As I grew older I have not visited the park as often as I would like but when you get older it is hard to do all the things that you enjoyed to do when you were a child. I have always felt close connections with parks. I enjoy just sitting in a park thinking, observe people and nature, and taking in some fresh air. Everywhere I go I look for a park so when I need a place to go outside and sit I know a place to go. I feel like people do not go to city parks very much nowadays because throughout the years I have notice less and less people visiting parks that I visit. My experiences at Loose Park are the reasons for my visits to parks, today. I will never forget the times I had at that park.