There was no moon in the dark sky. I did not notice if there were even any stars. In the dead of the night, I stole away. The great escape. At least, that is what it felt like at the time.
It was the most bittersweet moment I had ever experienced. I was leaving. I was leaving the only place I had ever known as home. A silent good-bye to the tiny community in the great Mid West. A place full of life's memories, good ones, not so good ones and ones that were the most wonderful in my life. Good-bye home town.
Good-bye to the house I had lived in since I was two years old. Its walls knew me better than anything or anyone in the whole world. The place where safety was right inside the front door. The place where we raised our family, the place we called home.
I had decided to rent a vehicle for this journey. All the items I thought I needed to take would not fit into my tiny car and then there was Runtly. Runtly, the ever entertaining, mischievous Jack Russell Terrier. My constant companion during the last, lonely 30 days. Well, it really wasn't 30 days, but it felt like it.....actually it had felt like an eternity since my husband had left for work in a land far away. Runtly needed to be comfortable for this trip because he does not travel well in a moving vehicle. A short trip to the store or the post office is fine, but, once outside the city limits, terror of the open road sets in and he is a panting mess.
When it came to deciding what style vehicle to choose, I picked an SUV. There was a twofold reason for this, one, it gave me more room for my belongings. Two, I would look cool in a SUV. When it comes to a 50 something woman traveling alone, on a one thousand plus mile road trip, coolness is an important factor. It sends a message to would be bad people that says, "Don't mess with the old lady in the SUV, there's something about her that just looks too cool." Yes, I had my trusty Jack Russell Terrier riding shotgun, but Runtly likes everyone and has no filter for anyone who may be carrying untrusty thoughts.
When I arrived at the rental company to pick up my cool ride, the only thing they had available for the trip was a........mini van....the epitome of uncoolness. For some odd reason, I was not too disappointed in my fate. After all, a mini van meant lots more room for lots more stuff. My youngest daughter had accompanied me on this trip and she was elated. She is the master packer when it comes to moving items from one household to another. I was sure I could see her eyes glaze over when she realized how much space she and her older sister where going to have to work with. We jumped in my uncool ride and made our way home.
It was not long before the packing crew duo were in full packing mode. They made it clear I needed to stay out of their way and I did not argue with them. I simply placed more things in a pile that I was sure I needed to take with me. A few hours later, they had not only packed a mini van with a load of cargo that would have filled an small U haul truck, they had left barely a space big enough for me to stuff a small plastic bag that held my last worn outfit.
So, in the still of the night, with Runtly secure in his kennel, we headed out on the open road. I had purchased a mild sedative for Runtly, just in case, but I did not give it to him. I thought surely he would calm down and enjoy the ride. Eighty miles down the road I was sitting in an empty parking lot, wrestling fifteen pounds of nervous white dog, in a mini van packed to the gills, trying to cram a small pill down his throat. He had panted so hard that it sounded like he was running along side of the van instead of in it. About twenty minutes later, the pill kicked in and Runtly was somewhere in la la land enjoying the journey.
There is more to this story but, I will save it for later. One thing is for sure though, if I could have written a ticket to every person who lives by the phrase, "the left lane was made for me", I could have solved this country's deficit problem.
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