Alva Review-Courier -

Though my great-aunt Mary passed away at age 101 in 1968, her spirit and spunk transcend time. At this time of painfully raw divisions in our nation after the recent election, she would be a healer at your table on Thanksgiving Day. Here’s what she might say, based on a lengthy letter she wrote in 1895.

“Let me first tell you a story about a trip I took when I was in my 20s. I boarded a train in Ohio and headed for Virginia to teach art at a boarding school.

“We rode all night and arrived at Cumberland Gap at 5 a.m. – only to be told the train tunnel had caved in and we’d have to cross the mou...