As May Rolls Around

I’ll be leaving my job soon at the bike shop and starting at a local version of REI in Okemos called Playmakers. This coincides with an effort on my part to get out more and meet people and broaden my network. A 2024 goal of mine after being in the area for two and a half years. Using Facebook, I joined a women’s hiking group that meets multiple times a week all over the area. So on any given day I can locate a walk and meet up!

Before starting my new job, I wanted to take little break and planned a trip to Ohio. I’ve already got my bus/train tickets. I arranged an itinerary that takes me in a loop from East Lansing to Detroit to Cleveland where a college friend will pick me up. After a few days she and I will drive to Athens, Ohio for me to meet up with an old high school friend. After a few days there, I’ll bus to Cincinnati to see friends from my Chicago days. My grandfather lived in Cincinnati; it’s where my Dad went to high school. His school still stands. The couple told me they could only host until Friday as they were driving up to Chicago for their son’s uni graduation. Great! I caught a ride with them to see friends in Chicago before training home on the Blue Water. Sort of a gypsy journey of catching rides and meeting up. My goal is to have long dinners and walks with old friends. With my college roommate there’s sure to be an adventure, something outrageous.

With travel always comes the apprehension and anxiety that grips my stomach: What about Covid? I could lose money and tickets, having to cancel. Remember the time I left my purse with everything in it? My mind flips through a number of potential disasters.

At the same time, having a plan helps with my mental outlook. I love having something to look forward to. Day-to-day life is so slow. Stuff rarely happens. It’s a ubiquitous grind of watching the birds at my feeder and planting tiny seeds in little pots, hoping they grow. It’s the daily watering and nurturing and worrying about insects and frost. Which hopefully has passed.

All the little thing that make up living.