It’s another early day for me, as I write, hurtling along at 30,000 feet, en route to my family and friends in Nova Scotia. A two-hour flight seemed like the perfect opportunity to set some words to a page, and after a somewhat harried and grey morning on the ground, it’s a relief to be sitting, unencumbered, with a clear blue sky cradled by a blanket of soft white clouds just outside the window. I don’t typically enjoy flying, but today it is lovely.

As much as I crave more nesting time at home, this trip is long awaited, and I’m not one to pass up an opportunity for repose on a Canadian coast. Home will keep for another week or so, and there will be plenty of time for settling in, come fall.

Today, I’ll share a few scenes from my life, in lieu of whatever it is I’ve been writing about lately…

I made space for a run yesterday, to stretch my stiff muscles and take in the trees and landscape, to remind myself of the sights and sounds and smells and energy of the little borough that I call home. While all of those pieces were wonderful, the thing that really stuck and had me laughing was that for the first twenty minutes or so, every time I’d see a car and spy a Pennsylvania license plate, I’d feel an inner sigh and think to myself, “Oh, look, another visitor from Pennsylvania.” Then, “OH, wait, right, I’m IN Pennsylvania!” Apparently, I unintentionally developed a habit of license place observance while in Vermont, where most of what one encounters while out and about is forest green with white lettering (VT) or white with red lettering (MA). At any rate, it was cause for amusement at how small habits stick, and another wee example of how long stretches away leave me in limbo for a little while.

Speaking of habits and the sticking of things in the brain, last night, I dreamed of four of my characters, and I’m hopeful that this is a positive sign of our getting to know each other. I suppose it left me with a similar feeling to having studied and practiced a foreign language to the point at which one finally dreams in that language, as if the brain is acknowledging that all of those pieces are really in there now – and comfortable enough to inhabit both the waking and the sleeping worlds.

Then came morning… With much gratitude for a hot shower, food in my belly, and a clean house, I caught a ride to the airport with my mom, who was generous enough to make a detour on her way home. Despite having flown many (many) times in my life, it seemed that everything took longer and was more complicated and confusing than usual. Then again, some days are just like that. On the plus side, it gave me the chance to connect with a few people, and tap into joy and kindness in the midst of the frazzle as I practiced surrendering to what simply was, and everything panned out well in the end.

Something wonderful happens inside when we smile – all the way to our eyes – even when we don’t particularly feel like it. Every time. This is amazing to me…

Now, I must head off to story land to make a little progress there before soaking up some much needed screen-free family and friend time.