Journal Prompt 8 // Airports

Monday, September 3, 2012

Harley & Jane


Jane:
This is the first summer in a long time I haven't been on a trip that requires air transport. In 2008 I went to Maine with my family, back to my father's childhood home. I returned the next summer to Maine with my younger brother. The year after that was Vienna, where H&J began. And the summer of 2011 was the trip to Belize with my sister. What adventures.

The first trip to Maine was one of the few plane trips with my whole family. With seven of us, we don't travel through many airports together. Our trip back East was one complication after another, if I remember right. We were stuck in the airport after one flight was delayed. We were delayed in the next one as well, due to the first plane's issue. We didn't get to our hotel before the wee hours of morning, and we all were exhausted by the time we collapsed into bed.

We had to leave by 8am to catch our ferry (which was a couple hours away) to the little Atlantic island we were staying at on night two. Much to our chagrin, the ferry left earlier than expected, so we missed another leg of transportation. My poor dad. The combination of grumpy everyone, Camp Rock songs on repeat and the fact that we kept missing boats and planes and car rental places before closing just about did him in.

The second trip to Maine with my brother was a different kind of adventure. We were going alone, and I, the chronic worrier, was sick thinking about being responsible for getting us there in one piece -- between airports, flights, layovers, busses and taxis. I didn't want to be caught unprepared, so for days I planned. I printed pages of itineraries and receipts and maps, organized them into folders for both Levi and me, and I studied them to make sure I knew them forward and backward (he still makes fun of me...). We had our folders easily accessible on our carry ons and my was a ginger ale-stained, tattered mess by the time we arrived.

But we got there. We made it without missing any planes, busses or luggage, though my sanity and patience may have worn a bit thin.

The obsessive planning isn't such an issue anymore; over planning is exhausting and stressful in itself. Instead I try to sit back, enjoy my pretzels and imagine the adventures in wait on the other side of the journey. Even running through an airport is an adventure, no?



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1 comment:

  1. I think Airports are something magical, actually I like being there, but I am also happy, when the journey is over and I am where I needed to go^^
    Sandra

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