Tuesday morning, the big morning, was full of last minute packing, and – big sigh of relief – everything fits in the car! In fact it fits really well, and I probably could have brought a few things I left behind, but they are behind now. I had to run to the Co-op for a scone because I couldn’t think straight and had no breakfast food in the house. But, all of my stuff went in, then I picked up Jake, whose is really traveling lightly, and we ran a few errands and were off! Thank goodness I have a traveling companion – I started heading down Rt. 30, when in fact I needed to go down Rt. 9, and Jake gently reminded me than we couldn’t get where we were going if we continued the way I was pointed. Crisis averted!
We had a good first leg – over on Rt. 9, down on Rt. 7, all through beautiful New England countryside and picturesque towns. The purple mountains provided a lovely backdrop, and I got the feeling that we are going to have a great trip. We arrived at the Grandparents’ house at about 1:45 and took a turn around the grounds. It’s idyllic here, with the gardens and songbirds and this comfortable old house.
Seeing Grandpa and Grandma is such a treat, and it’s reassuring to know how well they are doing. Grandpa kept saying how discouraged he has been by his hearing loss and memory loss, and I hope that it doesn’t turn into depression. In fact, having not seen them since Thanksgiving, I expected much worse, but I think they are doing very well. Grandpa is again leading a discussion group, this summer on Shakespeare. Grandma was out at a Garden Club luncheon when we arrived, but came in with all sorts of news. They are ushering for Shakespeare and Company this summer, and it sounds like their schedule is no less busy than ever before. Now I know where I get the ambition to fill up my life with worthy and exciting things.
At dinner, conversation turned to the political, and comparatively, the things I fill my life up with don’t seem quite as worthy. We talked about the 1963 March on Washington where Grandpa and my dad saw Dr. King, and also about some of the other actions that both Grandma and Grandpa took during that time to encourage civil rights. I believe my causes just as worthy, but I just got the distinct awareness of the apathy of the current populace. I do think that solutions must be local, but that might mean that we never do something as meaningful and effective as that March, and I think that would be a tragedy. That March changed things, albeit with a lot of local action to back it up, but without that March and that speech we would not be where we are today. So, charged again for action, we’ll see what develops once I arrive on the left coast.
I’m sitting here Thursday morning typing this at the kitchen table in Alford. Grandpa and Jake have gone into town for bagels and Grandma is sleeping in. We’re planning to head out at about 11:00 today, all the way to Oberlin to arrive there this evening. It will be our first big chunk, but for now I’m just going to enjoy this calm and sunny morning. I’ll take the book I picked up here out into the back garden until the guys reappear, and then we’ll see where things go from there.