Enjoying The Ride

  

   "Life isn't a race to be won, but a ride to be enjoyed" I don't know if I heard this some where or made it it up, but it came to mind while I was thinking about the past weekend.
     Why do weekends fly by so fast?  Oh yeah, I'm older and time in general is going faster except when I hit a time warp when time doesn't seem to be moving at its regular pace, or at all. Actually the week was pretty full with a variety of activities, interspersed with my part-time delivery driver job. Though the hours at work fill up the middle of day when I would love to be home writing, or out at the park walking in nature, it's mostly easy to do and allows plenty of time to think, or not, depending on my mood, and is definitely less stressful than nursing was. I just sometimes have to remember, when I'm traveling on a highway, that I'm working and not out for a road trip- no stopping along the way to shop or grab a cup of coffee.

Fun little detour at work

     The previous week ended with Easter dinner at my nephew Bill's home hosted by him and his wife Dawn. It was a fabulous feast of meats, veggies and homemade ravioli, followed by cannoli, cheese pie and chocolate cake. Though only a dozen or so of us were there, about half of the family, it was a pleasant afternoon, just a week after we celebrated my Mom's 95th birthday! Their home is about 30 miles away, so I enjoyed the ride out to the country and back on a beautiful sunny day.

I had an early drivers meeting at seven AM on Wednesday. While I went to work at seven for decades when I was a nurse, I don't generally head out the door that early these days. By the time I drank enough coffee to be awake during the meeting, I was too wide awake to go back to sleep afterwards so I managed to get a walk in before I had to go back at one to start my afternoon shift.

     After work Wednesday evening I went to a celebration with a group of friends I've know for years. There were a lot of familiar faces and some people new to the group and lots of food and fellowship. I especially enjoyed seeing my best friend, Karen, who considers herself directionally challenged. She made the twenty-five mile trip with the assistance of her "directionista" as she refers to her GPS.


     The next day I took a ride to visit a friend in the hospital before work. It was a hospital about 20 miles up the road that I had last been to about six years ago when someone I had been close to back then was a patient there. It was good to be able to spend time with my friend and also to reflect back on the changes since I was there before.

     The weekend began after work on Friday with a trip down Memory Lane at The Suburban Hospital Friends "Spring Fling". It was a long anticipated reunion of present and past members of the Suburban Hospital Family from over the past 40 years or so. It had been talked about and planned for many months and with the hard work and determination of some special nurses, especially Judi and Susan, with some help from some other folks, it was an amazing night.

     During dinner I sat with the second floor staff that I had first worked with at the hospital. We talked about the past and all the fun times, parties, and picnics we enjoyed.  After dinner there was time to mingle with the other two hundred or so folks that came back to share the joy of the old days, dance and take lots of pictures. The hours flew by and before long it was eleven o'clock and time to go home.

     The next morning found me moving a little slow and I got a late start. I met up with my usual Saturday morning friends for a while. Then I headed out for a Pancake Breakfast fundraiser where I got to spend time with a good friend I always enjoy being with and another woman I had not seen in a while and had some delicious blueberry pancakes.
     By this time it was almost noon and I got on the road to Oley, PA for the Antique Motorcycle Meet that my brother Bob has been telling me about every spring, and my friend Mike looks forward to every year. I got a little turned around and got to the Reading Motorcycle Club and walked around watching some racing before I realized I was not at the Meet I was looking for. By the time I found the right spot things were winding down, but I got to check out some antique bikes and had a fun ride out to the country.

Sunday was a day to rest up before heading back to work, but I found time to walk around the Empowered Light Holistic Expo in Oaks. I got grounded, talked with some beautiful people and got some products from vendors I had not met before.

 All in all I have had some varied opportunities to hit the road and spend time with others and alone last week. I am grateful to be enjoying the ride!