You can often learn a lot about a community -- its history, its people, its economic drivers -- through public murals painted on the sides of buildings, in building lobbies, and elsewhere. The Arkansas Delta Byways region has its share of these artistic expressions. Some are of great historic significance, such as the Works Progress Administration post office murals commissioned during the New Deal era. Others painted long ago have deteriorated over the years due to weather, crumbling buildings and other factors. Still others have been painted more recently to express the heritage of a community and the things it values. Then there are those that are more modern or abstract -- painted for the pure joy they bring to passersby. All of these are worth the trip.