First off, I’ll go ahead and admit it; I’m not a good
traveler. I mean like, from the time the planning begins. I like schedules. I like knowing that while
not every single solitary second is filled with an activity, that if I am traveling
eight plus hours, one way, to a desired
destination, that I will be able to see everything and everyone that I would
like to see. Do everything that I would like to do so that no time is wasted or
conversations about what I wish I had done were had later. Like on the eight
hour drive back home.
I’m not a good packer. For a three day event I take enough
of everything to survive in the wilderness for a month. I could clothe and feed
a third world with all the extra clothes and snack foods I pack. But you have
to be prepared. You never know what may
happen. What event may pop up that you might need that sequined party dress to
wear, or who may ask you to go fishing in which you would need that SPF 50
sunscreen and the tackle box you packed with all your other amenities. No, you don’t have any of those things on
your schedule, but you just never know.
I always reserve a hotel room that has a refrigerator and
microwave. I like to have drinks on hand that are already cool and don’t cost
$5.00 a bottle from the hotel vending machine.
And I must have a room with a King Daddy Dog air conditioner unit. It
must blow like the artic wind 24/7. However, no hotel room is ever the same,
nor is their air conditioning units, so I also try and always take my own box
fan. I do this for the noise it creates which is an awesome aphrodisiac for
sleeping, as well as the extra cool air it provides.
I tend to whine a bit about the driving part. Any trip over
three hours and you can count on it. Everything gets sore and begins to hurt,
multitudes of restroom stops must be made, and a constant barrage of “how much
longer will it be now” questions continue so much so that I am sure there are
times my husband wishes he had strapped me to the top of our vehicle; or
wonders at what point his wife turned into a five year old.
We attended my bonus granddaughters wedding this past weekend
in Lake City SC. It is an eight hour drive from Quincy Florida. Everything I
described above happened; and then some. But the minute she came down that
aisle, everything else disappeared. I
realize I am partial when I say, she is the most beautiful bride I have ever
seen; but she was. We had a wonderful time and were able to see a lot of family
that are not normally seen on regular visits. So much so, that the eight hour
drive back home, was hardly noticed at all.
As I listened to them say their vows, with all the
earnestness that comes with being young and so in love, it made my heart feel
so good. It made me feel so good about life, and what it holds for those two
young people. When you see that kind of love on the faces of people you love,
who could ever question that the world is in good hands with the youth of
today. As the minister pronounced them man and wife, the music begin to play. I
was both stunned by its originality and its appropriateness. As they all but
skipped down the aisle, their faces beaming, the speakers blared with I’m A
Believer (Then I saw her face, I’m a Believer) by the Monkees. If that’s not
the perfect end to a new beginning I don’t know what is.
