Miranda, Ashley F. and Justin F. spent Easter with Miranda’s parents. A nice relaxing Sunday. I spent most of Friday working on the house, continuing to caulk. Although I have no evidence to prove otherwise, I truly believe that it will make my house most energy efficient. Laugh if you wish, but there were a lot of spaces where cool air could escape in the summer and warm air in the winter. I have officially put a stop to all of that escape. Don’t get me wrong, I still have a little bit more to go, but I have gone through 3 boxes of caulk and I’ll probably need one more for the front porch area and the garage. Actually, I should probably purchase two boxes since I believe that caulk will solve most of my home’s problems, kind of like duct tape.
Flowers on the front porch.
Flower at Miranda’s parents’ home.
Flowers from a hanging plant in the back yard. As you can tell from the previous three pictures, there’s quite a few from home. I haven’t been anywhere in quite some time. Actually my little trip to McKinney was the first “trip” which was more than one hour away. I am getting restless and it stinks. I really need a vacation.
I’ve lived in my home for almost a year now and through all this time, I’ve never noticed this carcass of a tree that grew into a chain link fence on the side of my yard and then, obviously, what’s left of the tree has slowly worn away. You would think that with all of the mowing and yard work that I do that I would have noticed something like this over the course of a year, but I didn’t. It’s pretty amazing to think about it. A lot of things had to happen over the course of time to make this “tree” look the way it does, time, sunlight, water, heat, etc.
There’s a couple of reasons why we may be delaying a vacation. First off Miranda has school obligations which keep her from getting away right after school is finished. Secondly, Miranda is thinking about going back to school and becoming a nurse or something else in that field. I truly support this decision and I want her to go. This will mean very lean times for myself and my beloved, but it will eventually provide a better life for the two of us. Not only from a monetary standpoint, but she will have days off that she would not have now, it would allow her to essentially be a stay-at-home mom when that day comes. It’s not happening anytime soon, but eventually.
Seek The Substantial 
Your rotting carcus. The vibrant and beautiful colors of spring flowers spread happiness like a virus. I find that driving down the road, I am continually inspired by the bursting colors appearing in the landscape. New hope. New life. New beginning. Then, the pedals drop, the colors fade, and we are left with the memory.
Vacation. Why not? My theory has been that life is fleeting. This time where it is just the two of you will soon be replaced by the addition of a child or children. More work, more school, more responsibilities. While that seems far away, it will be here before you know it. A vacation lets you escape the day to day, and remember life before the wonderful, yet mundane, commonalities of life. You are free to regress and rediscover. For me, I rarely feel reinvigorated after a vacation, but in the weeks and months to follow. I look at the pictures, or steal moments of conversation with my wife remembering. Each time feeling the joy and energy of having experienced that time with her.
For me, I love the adventure of the vacation. Mostly the little things. The difficult flight attendant. The bitchy passenger. A new drink. A good dessert. The lonley grand-parent wanting to talk with some one on a long flight. These mini-adventures provide the opportunity for the best memories.
Sorry about the ramblings. See you soon.
Ben
That’s just it, I don’t know if there’s enough time for a vacation. W/ Miranda’s school (she may start taking classes this summer) and cheerleading that doesn’t much time to do anything. Sigh.
My high school history teacher disclosed the secret of life. At 16, I really didn’t appreciate the subtle wisdom, but have come to learn its truth: “you only do, what you want to do.” Roni, there are no vacation rules. You can do what you want. Sometimes other priorities pop up. Not that I have any large amount of wisdom, but I can say from experience that the most fond memories I hold with my wife are from our vacations, and fellowship visits, which are mini-vacations.