Tripset

We always called vacations "trips" when I was a boy. And they were. Mom and Dad would stuff us into the Chevy and we'd head out. Usually west, usually steering well clear of any towns of over 2000 people. We would drive around for a few days, looking for a motel every night. (Reservations? Not for this family. Ever.) I also still remember how we'd sit out in the car while dad was negotiating with the manager to get the price down. As a kid, the whole process mortified me. And there was the night where we drove around Denver for 6 hours before finding a place to spend the night.

Those memories pushed me to vacation differently. We always knew where we were spending the night before leaving home. In fact, my favorite vacation plan has been to fly or drive to a set location and settle in for a week or so. Searching for a place to sleep while vacationing was just not my idea of fun.

Nothing wrong with that, but I finally got it a few years ago. For Dad, the journey was part of the deal. He enjoyed the adventure of looking for the perfect (actually, cheapest) resting place. For him, the destination was just part of the deal, not the whole deal.

I am trying to apply that lesson to life now that Nancy is Home. I am on a new adventure here. Lots of "settled issues" are now once more "unsettled". I doubt if I will live in this house for the rest of my life, for example. Trying to settle these and other open questions in a few short months just might not be possible.

To survive this adventure, I need to remember what those long trips in the family Chevy should have taught me: the journey is part of the deal. And "Dad" is going to determine where I sleep at the end of the day. I should just trust Him and enjoy the ride. After all, His oldest Son has done the work to get us Home.