Over the weekend, I went on a road trip with my friend G and her girls. A wave of nostalgia washed over me as I was reminded of my kids and road trips with them along the length and breadth of America. Boston to Niagara, Washington DC, New York, New Jersey, Vermont, Maine, Montreal, Quebec, Ottawa, and Toronto. Boston to Florida, Florida to Seattle, Seattle to Oregon and Northern California. Vegas to Arizona and Long Beach, California. I can go on and on. As the planner and COO (Chief Organization Officer) in the house, I got to decide the itinerary and do some meal planning. I’d pack a fun picnic lunch that we could enjoy along the way.
We’d play games with the kids because no one had smart phones back then. For navigation, we used maps provided by AAA and later, the Tom Tom GPS (remember those?) I was and still am a sucker for fall colors. So we’d make trips to go stare at pretty trees in different parts of the country—Vermont, New Hampshire, Maine (fall colors at Arcadia National Park were out of this world!) The aerial tram ride at Gatlinburg was an unforgettable experience and we ended up going there twice to cruise over the mountains and enjoy the spectacular view of the trees adorned in different hues. The kids loved to speed down the Alpine slide as well.
So many trips. So many memories. But never once did I think that it would all come to an end. The kids would move out, go to college, move far away from home for work or their studies. I knew it would eventually happen but I never thought it would put an end to trips together as a family. But it did. Now they make trips to come see us or they go on trips with their friends.
For the trip to the beach with my friend, I cooked some food, brought some snacks and coconut water (expecting sunny and sultry weather). I don’t remember the last time I cooked so much food for a trip. We played songs, walked around the beach, and sand dunes when the sun peeped out after clouds and rain following us all the way to the beach from home. For lunch, we stopped at a waterfront restaurant that had a small pier and gazebo over the water. The food was exceptionally good, so we ended up having dinner there as well. I had the best vegetarian meal ever (in an American restaurant) here. Roasted cauliflower, with quinoa, sauteed zucchini and squash, in a light, flavorful sauce. Sooo good!
The weather played spoilt sport with rainy spells and mostly cloudy weather. The girls had brought along their Scrabble board so we ended up playing Scrabble (my favorite game) after dinner. The words we came up with were completely inappropriate! We watched a bit of Harry Potter on the telly and then called it a night. I always find it hard to sleep in hotels so I was up at 5:45 a.m. Since our room faced the Atlantic Ocean, we were hoping to catch the sunrise. I woke G up and we rushed to the balcony only to find it was rainy and cold, with the waves crashing angrily against the sandy beach. No sign of the sun at all.
When I told my friend about what was going on in my mind, she told me that she decided to do this road trip because she felt that their time together as a family was coming to an end. Her older one is half way through college and the younger one is heading off to college this coming fall.
I remember the last road trip I took with my dad. It was to Pondicherry for a wedding. The bride was the daughter of someone who worked in SuperFlame (our gas agency). My mom didn’t accompany us. It was just me and dad plus two other people from work. Six hours up and down and a few pictures of us together. That’s it. Now I can’t go on a road trip with him even if I wanted to. So if you have parents or kids who are still around, don’t waste your time. Go on that trip. Make memories. Cherish their company. Some day it will all come to an end but at least you can look back and smile at all the experiences and fun you had.
Punctuate Life 