Day 4

Michelle is an even earlier riser than I am, and on this trip I am having the strangest dreams. Last night I was traveling, in my sleep, cross country with Oprah Winfrey and her girlfriend, Gail. Perhaps they are the fantasy versions of Michelle and myself. I think she is Oprah and I am Gail. After the usual quick cereal breakfasts and grooming, we are off! We have almost all of Iowa to travel today and we are roughly 135 miles from Des Moines as I write this. I am really enjoying the view. Iowa is very green and not unlike Pennsylvania, especially where we live. When I scan the landscape, my eyes do not wander far without a red or white farmhouse or barn in their ken. Farm equipment sits, abandoned, in many fields and we pass, one after the other, farm equipment manufacturers. Traveling on the highway allows us to see all sorts of gargantuan equipment being hauled by 18 wheelers. Today, alone, we saw the giant blades of wind turbines, so popular here in the midwest, carried, one by one, on enormous trailers. Almost every small vale reveals livestock, cows, sheep, horses, bison, buffalo, that rise up like the colorful inserts of a "Pop Up" book. Because of the jokes I have heard over my lifetime about Iowa and the midwest, I expected to be bored, but I am amazed by the beauty of the pastures and the architectural simplicity of the homes. Life is not simple here; there is simply more space.

Incidentally, Iowa has wonderful Rest Areas that also have WiFi available to visitors, so we decide that for lunch we will find one of the rest stops, grill hotdogs and sausage on our gas grill on the outside of our RV, and create a picnic feast. Around 1:30, we do just this. I find a tablecloth and our supplies, and along side Interstate 80, 30 miles from Des Moines, we have a beautiful picnic: strawberries, cantaloupe, grapes, blueberries, bananas, hot dogs, sausage, and cold, icy drinks. The boys play football, Ethan climbs on the jungle gym with Tim, and I try to comprehend the fact that I will be saying goodbye to my friend in a few hours when we reach Omaha. We pose for pictures, laugh, sing a little bit, and eat, eat, eat! After we clean up, we hit the road and search for a gas station. At this time, I realize Ethan has been watching the same movie over and over again since Pennsylvania! He has been watching Star Wars III: Revenge of the Sith. Throughout most of the trip, he has been watching this and holding Star Wars figures in his hands. Nearer to Des Moines we find this great gas station that serves 9 different types of Cappuccino. Everyone loads up, and we are off.

Western Iowa is filled with wind turbines, and I don't know if you have ever been up close to one of these, but words cannot hardly describe the enormity and futuristic look of these. We have certainly seen this in Pennsylvania off in the distance, but in Iowa, the are right along Interstate 80 on the farmers' fields. Bennie is taken with them, and he snaps pictures with his camera. Ben and I discuss how these work and how they are so science fiction-like that they seem a bit unreal. I am surprised because when I think of Iowa, I don't think futuristic, although I suppose I should because they were first to bring us Obama and first to validate same sex marriage. They do say "Where goes Iowa, there goes the rest of the country," so perhaps they know a thing or two about generating energy.

As we drive and drive, I know Michelle is excited about seeing Meghan's little baby and as we cross the Missouri River and enter into the state of Nebraska, I am sure she is simply anticipating the reunion and introduction. Meghan's husband is a lawyer in the Air Force, so we head toward Bellevue and after following her excellent directions, we pull up right in her driveway. Michelle introduces me to her son-in-law, Matt, a very nice man, and eventually Michelle calls me upstairs to see her new grandbaby, Charlotte, who is nursing on her mommy's bed. She is a beautiful little girl with a mop of very dark hair, and her father is in love with her. Their home is lovely and white and I am hoping Bennie and Ethan will not leave handprints on all of her pristine walls! Yikes. Despite the fact that baby Charlotte is only 18 days old, Meghan and Matt have prepared a ton of food for us: pork barbeque, homemade cole slaw, homemade muffins, and homemade desserts. I cannot believe what she has done. The only person who should be eating anything of Meghan's that is homemade is Charlotte! She is so hospitable and looks and sounds just like Michelle. We eat and laugh in the backyard; Ethan shows off and rough houses with Tim and Matt, and I know it is time to say goodbye. We all gather at the front of the house and in front of our RV and the goodbyes begin. I know this will be sad but I am consoled ONLY by the fact that we will see her in San Diego for a day when we reach California. As Michelle and I embrace, she immediately cries and, of course, I have been holding back the tears in the base of my throat for at least five minutes. We cry, we tell each other it will only be temporary, and we get in the Dodge Dakota and drive away. Ethan, who would not hug Michelle, begins to cry as we drive down Chenault Drive, and then begins to sob. "I was so comfortable with them following us. I want them to follow us again." Just two blocks away, I ask Ben to stop the truck so I can change Ethan and wash his face, which is tear stained with dirt from his fingers. Ethan looks like I feel.

Tonight as we drive and I keep choking up about leaving Michelle and her family behind in Omaha, Nebraska, we look up into the sky and it is as if there are two suns in the Nebraska sky because of the way that a cloud formation has gathered in front of it. As we drive away from the city, I think of change and friendship and love and family. I have come to realize that people enter our lives when we need them for the very special quality or gift or presence or even buoyancy they give to our lives, and they often disappear or fade away when they have give this present to us. I have had so many wonderful people in my life, and even though I no longer see them or jobs or marriages have taken them far away, I remember what they added to my life and how they often healed me. During a very difficult time in my life many years ago, the lovely ladies of Panther Valley School District entered my life and became my soft place to fall. They cheered me, comforted me, buoyed me, and brought me back from dead. Christa encouraged me, made me laugh, and complimented each day. Sue supported me, gave me news that I needed to hear, and promised me happier tomorrows. Joany listened to me, validated me, and always thought on the same wave length as me. Each loved me and helped me to live again. Today, I leave, curbside, another dear woman in my life who helped me at an equally difficult stage: the loss of my mother and grandmother. Michelle laughed with me, commiserated with me about our professional lives and motherhood, and she and her family helped to fill the hole in my heart. Michelle, the patch you put there is holding fast and has healed over. I will always be grateful to you. I am glad that we did not say goodbye in Tamaqua. It is fitting that we escorted you half way across the country. You deserved it: you my dear are forever family. I love you.