Friday, March 26, 2021

May the road rise up to meet you

I finally took some time today to transfer and edit photos from my phone to my laptop, an essential step for building a blogpost. I discovered that the majority of them were taken March 17 – St. Patrick's Day, and the day we drove to Walla Walla, WA and back to fetch our son from college.

It was bittersweet, knowing it could be the last time we drove there. I like familiar road trips; seeing the scenery change with the seasons, stopping at favorite rest areas or eateries along the way, exploring new points of interest at and around the destination. I thought we'd have three-plus more years at least to travel this route. Instead, I found myself mourning a little, like when I realized I would probably never drive to Spokane again after my dad died. On top of that, our hearts were heavy with the knowledge that our son had thrown away a $40K+ merit-based scholarship and had rather nebulous plans for his future. Oh well; might as well make the best of it. So I got up and enjoyed the beautiful sunrise, even stepping off the deck to get a picture of Mt. Hood, before heading to the barn to do chores.





Then it was time to hit the road for the first half of our 560-mile round trip. We made a pit stop at Starvation Creek, a place we've only stopped at once before just to use the facilities. This time, in the process of walking Poppy, we realized there was a waterfall nearby and decided to check it out. It was a beautiful interlude – with a fascinating backstory (don't worry, no one actually starved there; if you click to biggity I think you can read the sign).













I kept my fingers busy most of the drive; spindles are handy that way. And this fiber is lovely!


Once at Walla Walla, Poppy and I kept our feet busy walking the neighborhood around campus while waiting for Brian to get his stuff packed up and hauled down to the truck. That took three hours. 🙄 Then it was back on the road for the trip home. The sun was setting as we left the Walla Walla valley and headed toward the Columbia River Gorge:





So that was last week. We are all adjusting. Brian started full-time work this week; good thing, as he has rent due next week. 😉 When I googled the words of the traditional Irish blessing to help me in titling this St. Paddy's Day post, a song by Dan Fogelberg came up. I do love his music, so had to take a listen. It ended up being most appropriate:

That's all for tonight from . . .

8 comments:

Retired Knitter said...

I couldn’t help but think, as low as you felt this trip, you were granted beautiful skies (which you always seem to have) and an unexpected and lovely display of water in nature. I, too, enjoy taking road trips that are familiar. Unfortunately now that my husband can’t drive - I am the driver and I can’t enjoy my usual past time - knitting while enjoying the view. I miss being the passenger.

Sorry about Brian. Believe me when I say I know that feeling. My son took another route as well. It is a disappointment for sure, but I suspect Brian - although he looks like a man - still has quite a bit of maturing to do. It takes some males longer than others. My son now (in his 40s) couldn’t be a better person. He took the harder road to maturity, but ended exactly where I wanted him to be as an adult. I pray the the same for your son.

Mama Pea said...

Here's hoping Brian is entering a new phase of growing, maturing, and self-discovery that will show him the way to a rewarding, happy life. Sometimes we all have to take the circuitous route to where we ought to be. It's not an easy period for loving parents, but keep the faith and this, too, shall pass!

Leigh said...

I think as parents, we see a plan for our kids and then inevitably have to deal with their seeing a different plan for themselves. I was one who dropped out of college after my third quarter. I'm not sure my mother ever forgave me for that. But I think it didn't work because I was doing what she wanted. Even though it was something I was fairly good at, I had no inner enthusiasm for it. It took a number of years to figure out what I wanted and to go back again to get my degree.

It seems to me that one of the hardest parts of parenting is learning to shift from a parent-child relationship, to an adult-adult relationship with our children. My mom was never able to do that.

Florida Farm Girl said...

Hugs to you, dear girl, as all of you deal with the new home life. Here's hoping and praying Brian finds his way sooner rather than later.

wyomingheart said...

These times of transition are difficult. My parents were incredibly disappointed in my decision to give up a music scholarship, and join a country band, where we worked the Nevada Circuit...on the road for 10 months a year, for five years. I know they wanted something different for my life, and it did turn out much better than they expected. I also finally got my college degree when I was 47. So, sending some prayers to you during these transitional times.

Michelle said...

I feel for you, Elaine! Now that I spin and knit, I LOVE being the passenger – unless the road is windy (because motion sickness) or it's dark (because DH's intolerance for a light source). And I count on those prayers while I practice patience!

It will be interesting to see where his circuitous route takes him, Mama Pea. He's not finding his current work for the farming outfit pleasant AT ALL (walking all day with a backpack sprayer or hedging hazelnuts, vs. driving fancy combines), so it's a good lesson that all jobs have upsides and downsides. 😉

Leigh, Brian was following HIS "dream" by attending this particular school to get a mechanical engineering degree so he could eventually work for a firearms manufacturer (getting paid to shoot guns, basically); that was certainly not our dream for him, but we supported his decision. I think we may ALL be surprised with where he ends someday down the road!

Thank you SO much, Sue.

That's pretty cool, wyomingheart! The things we don't know about one another....

Jeanne said...

Michelle, I continue to pray for you and Rick, as well as for Brian. We may not know for a long time, where his path will take him. Trust in the Lord, and wait for His guidance. I know you pray for Brian. It's obvious that farm work is not to his liking. Hopefully, he'll make the right decision before long. After dropping out of college our son did work at a music store in Portland for several years, before attending Portland Community College. He has now worked for a company in Tualatin for about 30 years, as a field man. He travels quite a bit, likes his work, repairing computerized systems on various types of things. He's worked on most or all of the bridges in the area, to keep their mechanisms operating. I'm so glad he found his niche. I love him dearly. Hang in there dear friend!

A :-) said...

I know it must be a disappointment that Brian walked away from that scholarship. I recall wanting to take a year off between high school and college and my mom said absolutely not. There was no arguing . . . I finished my original degree although I transferred schools twice. And I graduated with my class. As I look back, I don't know how I did it - my last year and half of undergrad I worked a full 40-hour/week job AND I carried a fulltime 15- or 16-hour class load. I seriously don't know how I was able to do that. I worked in my chosen field (theatre/music) and actually made a living at it, but eventually I stopped after gaining a lot of marketing experience working as a temp between gigs. My last 20+ years were as a business researcher, which I loved and was great at. I hope that Brian will find his way. I know it must be hard when you see the decisions he's making now.