Sunday, August 24, 2014

Traveling - and All the Joys It Brings

Hello!

For the past week and a half, I have been away from home in various forms.

I've been away from home to go home.
Wherein, I spent a week back with my family in SoDak and really enjoyed the time. I was able to see good friends, eat good food (the best, of course, being Mom's cooking), and completely forget about the responsibilities that come with living in Montana.

I love going back to SD.  It allows me to remember and appreciate how incredible my family and upbringing was, while simultaneously allowing me to treasure where I live currently.  There are things that I don't miss about South Dakota - the main one of which is the humidity.  But I do miss seeing such familiar faces all the time.  However, that is changing in my new home and all the time I'm seeing more and more people I recognize daily.

I've been away from home after a trip home heading back home but stuck because of truck troubles.
This scenario allowed me to recognize the worth of my friendship with a good friend of mine who was traveling with me.  There are very (very!) few other people with whom I could be stuck along the side of the road and not get annoyed with.  I attribute it to our history as friends, and also to our understanding of each other.

And to his Mom, who wisely gave us a bag of food to eat.  If I'm hungry, I'm crabby.  This prevented that.

I've been away from my new home to go and witness a friend in his new home with his new beautiful bride.
I loved this trip. I got to spend quality time with good friends that I haven't seen in a while.  I also got to know previous acquaintances to a greater extent, which I think is always good. We ate, we drank, we danced, we talked, we laughed laying in the grass under a tree, we sat quietly in the car because we were hungry, we yelled in the car because it was funny.
We appreciated life, and I feel like that's such a special gift.

My brother said that I only post when something isn't right or when I'm upset about something.  Well, Derek, this post is not that!  I am so thankful for the past week and a half. I feel ready to start the school year with all the challenges that will come.

But right now, mostly, I'm ready to stop staring at grey speckled walls and get out of this airport.
There's snow in the mountains in Montana. I'm ready to XC ski.

Best,
A