Storytime

A friend of mine told me I was crazy for packing up the family SUV at 4 in the morning and taking the kiddos, mom and grandma on a Kansas road trip. Ok, lots of people told me I was crazy. But I remember doing the exact same thing when I was a kid. Packing up the car, waking up at 8 a.m. already half-way to our destination and changing out of my jammies at a highway truck stop. It's exciting and totally worth it in the end. I'm still recovering, but I'm sure it will feel worth it in a few more days. I'm sure of it.

We drove out to Wichita, KS for my great-aunt Margie's 90th Birthday. We got time with family and friends, went to church, and had adventures. (Who needs gasoline, anyway?) But my favorite part of the whole trip was sitting with Margie as she told me the ins and the outs, the ups and the downs of 90 years on this planet. It was beautiful and sad and funny and touching. She shared openly and honestly with a greater sense of self-reflection than most people ever acquire. We cried when the story was sad and at the end of every "era" she asked if I wanted her to go on. It was a special little moment that made me hug Parker closer as I realized my children wouldn't have made it if I'd been born when Margie was, they would have been too small and weak. It made me grateful for the good fortune and true blessings that have fallen on Derrick and myself. It made me love my mom. Even more than usual.

It made me wonder what my story will be in 2070.
I hope it's as good as Margie's.