Travels at the End of a Semester

Yesterday morning, I got up very early.  I decided I would push through, get my grading done, and get grades turned in before leaving on my road trip.  And that is what I did.

This week is the last week before my fall schedule begins to intensify.  By this time next week, I won't really have a stretch of time to come see my parents in Williamsburg. Between the classes that I'm teaching in person, on Tuesdays and Thursdays, and the preaching that I'm doing on Sundays, I won't have time to get away.

I always think it should be a quick zip of a drive to see them, but I always forget how far south I live; I'm not just driving east, but it's a 2-3 hour trek to get to the border.  It's a pleasant enough drive, but it does take 6 to 7 hours, and that's if all goes well.  

Yesterday, all went well.  I pulled into my parents' driveway just before 1.  We had a lovely lunch outside, where it was hot, but there was a breeze and shade, and it was worth it to watch the butterflies dart in and out of the lovely blooms that the neighbor has planted in the common area.  Every so often, a gold leaf drifted by on the breeze, a reminder that despite the heat, the season is drawing to a close.

We talked about a variety of topics:  my Monday visit to the dermatologist (lots of zaps of nitrogen to pre-cancerous spots and 2 chunks sent for a biopsy which will likely come back as cancer), Florida's housing insurance crisis (prompted by this story which ran in The Washington Post in yesterday's paper version, but I had seen earlier), and the larger political situation. 

My dad went to his rehearsal (he sings with a Barbershop group in Richmond), and Mom and I went up to the main facility to eat at Archie's Grill.  I had the burger I always have, the one that comes with blue cheese and beautiful lettuce and some balsamic glaze with a side of sweet potato fries--last night, everything was the perfect temperature, which isn't always the case.  I may have it again later in the week.

I ended the evening with my mom in the library, trying to find books to recommend to my mom--I found a few old treasures by authors I remember loving decades ago, like Joanna Trollope and Lee Smith.  I had a very early bedtime, since I had been up early grading and then had a longish drive.  I slept really well, a rare treat these days.

It feels strange to have grades turned in, to have a few days (literally, only a few days) in between classes, the ones I'm taking and the ones I'm teaching.  Let me make the most of it!