Packing

Tonight Maribeth and I crammed her car full of stuff for her summer in Yellowstone. I didn't ask what she was taking - I just helped her jam it in. She knew what she wanted to take, and hopefully she has everything she needs.

Afterwards, I packed a few things for my weekend in New York City with Molly, my sister Marilyn and her daughters Rachel and Lucy, and my nephew David. We're going there to celebrate David's high school graduation. I packed the same way I usually do - put clothes in there that I think I will need and hope for the best.

As hard as it seems sometimes to physically pack for a trip, it's much easier than packing that emotional baggage. I wish I could pack up the junk I don't need in my life - bad habits, an unbridled mouth, laziness (you get the idea) - and send them on a trip of no return. I wish I could just toss them in a suitcase and put them on a bus.

But I can't. It's still there, waiting to show up. I just have to remember that even though I can't pack it up and send it away, I don't have to carry it around with me. Maybe I can just learn to let it sit there and gather dust. Maybe if it sits long enough, I'll forget they were ever there to begin with.

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Things that make today great: Shopping and packing with Maribeth; picking up Lindley at day care and making videos; Factory takeout with the family