Tuesday, August 30, 2022 - TRIP - PART II

 Tuesday, August 30, 2022 - TRIP - PART II

MEMORABLE

I have written before about making memories.  I’ve also written about getting outside our comfort zone.  

I turned 75 last week.  I am learning about aging.  I’m starting this blog post in a hospice room in my work environment.  I’m sitting with a 95-year-old delightful lady.  (This is the first time I’ve been with her).  (I’m not sure if I’m working with her - or … she is working with me).    

She talked about taking a train from Tulsa Oklahoma to California to go to college in 1945 at age 18.  She talked about dancing, smoking, and about God in her life.  

As we age, we frequently slowly shrink into ourselves.  We don’t intentionally shrink. We just don’t do things.  

I have a group of friends that meet for coffee every Wednesday in Austin at Central Market.  I used to go frequently  - but I’ve been only once in the past few months.  I rationalize “It is hard to fight the traffic to get to Central Market”;  “It’s going to take me an hour to get there and an hour to get home and coffee is about two hours - that’s a lot of time on the road just for a coffee with friends.  There are friends here in Georgetown (my suburb), and I can go for coffee with them.  

There are other things that I could do.  Instead, I play solitaire too much.  I am shrinking.  Do I want to go to the senior dance this coming Friday?  But, what if my friend can’t go?  Can I go without a specific friend?  What if I don’t know anybody?  (So what?  Make new friends!!!)

Let’s look at two related words:  awe: a feeling of reverential respect mixed with fear or wonder.; Awesome: extremely impressive or daunting; inspiring great admiration, apprehension, or fear.

BACK TO THE TRIP

There were some moments of “awe” on this trip.  Stepping outside my tent in Black Mesa State Park at 2:00 a.m. and seeing the myriad of stars put awe in my heart.  (Okay, it was really “awesome”).

The high plains of Panorama Point in Nebraska inspired “awe” as well.  These treeless prairie areas - mile after mile without trees, and very little difference in the view was awesome.  

The frog concert (and I got confirmation that it was a frog chorus) at Hall County Park was exciting - or “awesome”.  

The getting of 42.0 miles per gallon of gasoline was awesome (in a different kind of way).  The three big breakfasts (D&Js in Julesburg Colorado, Tommys in Grand Island, and Mainstay Suites in Oklahoma City) were awesome.  (And, yes, it kind of hit my diet the wrong way - but having a waffle with so much syrup - and so much sugar was awesome).

Driving 2450 miles was awesome.

Yes, I made a major memory.  I even told this 95-year-old hospice lady about my trip.  It was awesome.  

Doing this trip under $500 was awesome

Driving about 40 miles on dusty gravel roads was awesome.

Seeing buffalo in an open field without a fence was awesome (and they didn’t stampede!!!)

Meeting six new black friends on Black Mesa was awesome (they did have four legs and said ‘Moo’).

And, knowing I could still drive such long distances without falling asleep was awesome.

Crying happy tears several times; feeling the presence of God; stepping outside my comfort zone; camping in a tent - were all awesome experiences - and all totaled this was a memorable trip.

(I was informally thinking of next summer - and I had ideas - more state high points.  Still in the thought process.

*****

So, what have you done in the past month (or even past year) that was memorable?  That was made up of awesome experiences. 

Get out of your shrinking comfort zone, and make memories!!!  I did!!!

LOVE WINS!!!

Karen White, August 30, 2022, ©