Texas

Last week I escaped my stress ridden work life and took a surreptitious (and blissful!) four day holiday.  I mean, I really escaped.  My son and I hopped a plane and flew all the way to Texas.  We rented a car and drove through the countryside to the small town where my mother and step-dad live.
They have a cozy little house and long plot of land with chickens and a kitchen garden.

One morning we went to the library book sale.  It was story time and all the young children were there with their mothers.  That kind of thing makes me wistful and relieved at the same time.

We also went to the small shops along the one main street (or maybe there were two streets).  The shops were full of crafty things and antiques and homemade sweets.

  "Kids, I'm not gonna tell you again--get off the lamp!"

The lemon fried pie was fabulous!!  Honestly though, it was hard to choose a flavor--peach, cherry, pineapple, apple, apricot--there was even a "moonshine" flavored one.  Ah!  Delicious!  It was chocolatey with pecans and coconut and moonshine I guess, though I couldn't taste it.

When we first arrived at this place, the caretaker came out with a big gun--a rifle I guess.  It was intimidating to say the least, but he wasn't armed to scare us away.  He was waiting for some wild pigs he knew had been tearing up the meadow.  He told us not to be alarmed if we heard shots.  Ha!

We had come to fish.  Which we did.  We saw a snake in the water when we first arrived, though he swam away.  The dock and boat house were covered in humongous webs.  The spiders could've been bait I guess.  But luckily we had some worms and corn.

The fish were small, but we caught nine in about an hour and a half.  It was crazy lucky fishing.  What you think fishing will be when you are a little kid--bait the hook, throw in the line, catch a fish, do it again.
We spent more time removing the hooks from the fishes' poor little mouths (we threw them all back) and baiting hooks than waiting for a bite, that's certain.

We also saw these strange little bird nests under the highway.

I slept on a futon bed next to a low window.  Moonlight came gently through it and the soft sound of wind or wings in the leaves of the bushes there.  I felt utterly and completely relaxed.


I walked for a few days in a different land.  I got to see my mom and visit a little with my dad, and I got to spend time with my son.  At my job, I spend a lot of time taking care of people, but at the expense of myself I think.  I have known this.  But somehow, being away I sensed a beacon--not calling me home, but calling me to other places, to other roads.