Life works in mysterious ways, because in late July a friend of mine who lives on the East Coast invited me to take a trip with him. He too needed a change of scenery and offered me the opportunity to travel with him. Of course I couldn't turn down the offer even though I was a bit nervous about traveling several hours on the Amtrak train because of the coronavirus.
I journeyed from Traverse City, Michigan to Toledo, Ohio, and took an overnight Amtrak train to Albany/Rensselaer to meet my friend who drove from Queens, New York. The train ride was pleasant and the train arrived right on time to Albany. I waited in the sweltering heat for my friend outside the station and about 20 minutes later he appeared.
We greeted each other and then the adventure began. It was a wonderful two weeks of exploring parts of New England and than relaxing for a few days in beautiful Schroon Lake in the Adirondacks Mountains. On the evening before my departure my friend encouraged me not to leave. "You're having so much fun and this trip is really helping you mentally. Why don't you stay another week?" I wanted to, I really wanted to but I was feeling guilty because my friend was paying for a big part of this trip and I didn't want to impose on him anymore.
I've been back home a week now, regretting everyday that I didn't stay longer. This trip was just what I needed and despite not getting a lot of sleep, eating too much unhealthy food, and having to be on constant guard of social distancing and avoiding crowded places, this vacation with my friend Frank was charming, idyllic, and magical. I miss the sun rising early in the morning, I miss our drives along the Atlantic Ocean, and eating seafood, I miss swimming in the lakes and kayaking, I miss eating ice cream cones and s'mores. I miss the bonfire and exchanging friendly conversations with incredibly amazing people. I miss the mountains, and the farms, I miss the beautiful scenery and the carefree moments of being on a vacation. I miss the marvelous places we stayed at, and not having much responsibility.
REGRETS, are part of life. What I learned from this experience is that when you are blessed with such a splendid time in life that brings happiness, why hurry to leave it behind? I had so many unpleasant things happen to me before this vacation that taking this vacation and embracing it was what mattered.What a blessing this vacation was. It was like a miracle from the LORD to be granted such a lovely two weeks with a generous and thoughtful friend.
Oh, if only I could turn the clock back. Knowing what I do now, I would have been wise to accept Frank's offer to stay an extra week and embrace it with gratitude. However, I made the choice to leave and now I cannot turn back BUT I can hold on to the precious moments of this exhilarating trip that I'll forever cherish. I'm also glad that I was able to do acts of kindness for Frank too, and help contribute to the expenses of the trip.
I HOPE all of you get a well deserved break from life's responsibilities and can enjoy a FABULOUS vacation somewhere, sometime and most importantly not have any REGRETS!
