Transition Trippin’

Here’s this week’s reflection. I hope it resonates with you and ask that, if you enjoyed, please comment and share on your social media. Heartfelt thanks for all your support!

Keeping the light on for you,

Carol

I’m in!” my daughter exclaims as I broach the idea of a road trip south. She’s on break, not starting grad school until late summer, and I have a week off work. With her twin sister sucked into a new job and the hubster out of town for work, we take the serendipitous bull by the horns to get out of Dodge (IN a Dodge).

This daughter enjoys driving the open road, and I enjoy soaking up views of graciously simple rural life along our journey south. I am more than comfortable in the passenger seat as my driver navigates interstates and cities – a welcomed change from her early driving days when my life would flash before my aging eyes, and a river of f-bombs roared from my lips, every time she attempted merging into freeway traffic. But her large urban university has taught her well, and a proud smile replaces my few reflexive shallow breaths. Settling more deeply into my seat, I survey the lilliputian adult next to me with pride (and considerably lower blood pressure). 

This summer, my twin daughters and I are ALL in transition. They have entered adulthood with either a new profession or enrollment in post-graduate professional education. I entered a new decade, my sixties, and this trip offers precious bandwidth to reflect on the entirety of that beautiful mess. Having had children later in life (just the way it worked out), we ladies have successfully experienced our share of pendulum collisions of stress and hormones, (think menstruation and menopause), through which we hopefully have bonded and shared a warped sense of humor. It is often said that “the joy is in the journey.” Heaven only knows we should be chock full of jubilation in our house. 

For the next ten days, my daughter and I visit family, hike a few state parks, wander quaint small towns, antique, eat great southern staples (turnip greens, biscuits, and fried chicken if you please), and sample a smorgasbord of Martinis (along with sweet tea, of course). We are as free as the wind, with open minds, a mostly open schedule, and great weather. It is nothing short of glorious!

Yes, we’re not only road trippin’, we’re head trippin’!

The idea of transition stays with me throughout our journey as we think outside the box, view items with new eyes, and consider how our lives are moving forward. We contemplate futures: for her, a new professional vibe, and for me, a fresh perspective on how I wish to continue aging. The juxtaposition of careers both beginning and winding down prompts lively conversation covering potential pitfalls, surprising victories, and reflection on past foibles. Vocational and personal lives are coming full circle as we traverse our multi-state route.

For me, the additional head-scratching conundrum is where in the hell the last 60 years went! So much has happened over that time: the abundant joys, occasional heartaches, the mindset shifts through the changing priorities of life’s stages, and the profound inner growth guiding a trajectory for adventures yet to happen. While my daughters configure their starts, I’m shaping my retirement. And may I be the first to fist pump through my mature lens that it be filled with fun and excitement for each of us! 

I believe a long light, much like the summer solstice, shines in front us. As we all anticipate what’s next, we also bask in the glow of opportunities yet to come. Summer marches on; so too, our assimilation of a new normal. And when autumn rolls around, may all our souls be ensconced in the bountiful harvest of what we’ve sown.