Traveling Alone
I’m on my own now and I’m such a worry wort. My husband has been gone now for almost two and a half years, and I never realized how hard it is to keep up with everything. My heartfelt thanks go to my husband who made it all look so easy. He took such good care of me. Now I worry that I won’t have enough money to take care of myself. I worry that my house needs repairs. I worry that my car will break down. I worry about my kids and grandkids. I tend to worry about everything! Worrying like that is useless, nonproductive, and just plain dumb.
I am “at that age” where, if I want to do something, I need to just do it – and do it now. It’s now or probably never. It’s too bad that I waited so long after Frank passed to allow myself to explore new experiences and places. Just because I am by myself now, I do not want to be a stick in the mud. I am now traveling alone and I’m learning to enjoy it!
I took a trip with my sisters in law and a cousin to New Orleans earlier this year. In the car on the way there and back, we laughed at the craziest things and had such a wonderful time. Those belly laughs were great medicine! Unfortunately, I wasn’t up to all the walking in the city because I had injured myself. That wasn’t fun. I tried hard not to drag everyone down with me, but I know I probably inconvenienced them. We took a dinner riverboat cruise, which is one of my favorite things. Overall, I had so much fun and I’m very glad we went.
Recently I took a road trip on my own. Oh, I’m used to driving by myself for shorter distances. It’s not a big deal to drive a couple of hours to Wichita for shopping and appointments. I used to take business trips (all in Kansas) by myself. Heck, I even drove to Michigan once by myself when we moved our newly married son and his bride so he could begin his graduate studies! Of course, Frank was following somewhere behind me with the U-Haul truck. I knew if I had trouble, I could just wait for him to catch up to me. Ha!
Anyway, last week I drove to see all three of my sons. One lives in Atchison, Kansas, one in Overland Park, Kansas (Kansas City), and one in St. Louis. I finally started to relax on the jog from Overland Park to St. Louis and I let it sink in that there wasn’t anything to worry about. From there on, I just had a good time, singing to the radio and enjoying the scenery. I will admit it was hard getting my luggage into the hotels I stayed in. I have a bad back so that was a process! I watched TV, went to bed early, and enjoyed the nice hotel rooms.
I had such a good time with all three boys and I’m so glad I got brave and drove to see them. I didn’t have a schedule, but I did get to do some things I kind of planned. Simple things. I had my youngest son cut some wood for me and I got to see his goats. I also got to see a mostly done renovation project that he has been working on. We went to a wonderful bookstore and enjoyed gelato. In Overland Park, I wanted to go to Buca di Beppo with my middle son’s family. I don’t get to see those grandkids very often, so it was just fun to visit with them! We went to the nursery where his daughter and second son work. It’s a really nice nursery with beautiful plants and they have a great gift shop with lots of interesting merchandise. On my return trip, I stayed in Overland Park again and we visited some more! My oldest son, who lives in St. Louis, helped me find a “project” chest of drawers at a secondhand store. I got to meet my daughter in law’s aunt who I had met on Facebook, and I got to go to Cracker Barrell. I know that’s silly, but I love to shop there!
That will not be my last trip! I don’t know where I will go next, but I have promised myself that I will not be scared or borrow trouble with unnecessary worry. I encourage you to have some carefree fun too, no matter what stage of life you are in. Don’t talk yourself out of new experiences. Nothing good comes from needlessly waiting for something bad to happen. It’s also so important to enjoy spending time with your family and friends. What’s the old proverb? “Time and tide wait for no man.” (Or woman!)