Change

There is always resistance to change. Change brings uncertainty. But sometimes change brings excitement.

I feel that there is change in the air. Or, is it that I am hopeful for a change? It doesn't matter which is the truth. However, I feel the change coming.

The routine of our daily lives has been tweaked a bit today. Adina is off on a school field trip. She had to be at school at 5:30 a.m. because the buses leave for Orlando at 6 a.m. So Joel and Adina were up at 4:30 a.m. I can usually sleep through anything, but this morning I was up. Adina was so excited, I know that it was hard for her to be quiet. She must have run up and down the stairs 20 times before she was ready to leave. That didn't really bother me, but of course, once they left, I was up for good. I tried to sleep, but couldn't.

So, here I am, sitting in bed, reading emails and writing in this journal. A bit of a change for me. I know that I will be tired later, but that is okay. I am excited for Adina too. I remember what it was like to get up at the crack of dawn. Even before the birds were chirping. My parents used to take me on trips to Washington, DC because that is where my Mom's sister, Sylvia, lived. I loved visiting Aunt Sylvia and Uncle George and of course, my cousin Dennis.

The first thing on Saturday morning, I would meet Dennis in the kitchen and we would eat ice cream for breakfast! That was always so much fun. And Dennis was the only person, besides my Mom, who was call me Jody Robin! Until the day that he died, he called me on my birthday and would say in his Baltimore twang, "Happy Birthday Jody Robin!"

And I was a grown woman! But he was so sweet and loving when he would say it to me. He always made me smile! I do miss him, but I think of him on my birthday and I am sure he is thinking of me too!

But those early morning trips were exciting because it was a change in routine. And of course, the minute we left the driveway and were heading down the street toward the stop sign on Healy Avenue and 25th Street, I would announce to my Mom that I was hungry! Don't know why, but it happened EVERYTIME!!

The very last time that I took a car trip with my parents was in 2002. I was in New York with the girls for two weeks in August. Rachel was 12 and Adina was 7. My parents asked if we wanted to go to Hershey, Pennsylvania! I couldn't really believe that they wanted to do a car trip with all of us, but we all agreed.

So we packed all the things that would keep the girls occupied. We packed food and drinks. My Mom insisted on taking towels and bedding and pillows!! The car was packed to the gills. But, we had all of our creature comforts. And we were off.

My Mom insisted on sitting in the back with the girls. I navigated with maps and my Dad drove. It was like old times, but I was 45 years old! It was strange, it was change and it was an adventure.

And no sooner did we pull out of the driveway, one of the girls said they were hungry! I had to laugh at that and so our adventure began. It was a great trip. We didn't have a set plan. We just decided what to do as we drove. We ended up getting off the main highway and driving on back roads. We saw lots of fields of corn and tiny towns with rolling green hills and brick houses with front porches and American flags posted proudly. We stayed in hotel dives, but we didn't care. I was more amazed that my Mom didn't mind the inconveniences, but it added to the change. We were on the road for about a week. When we returned back to New York, we were ready to get there and sleep in our own beds. But it was fun.

So change can be fun. But the anticipation can rattle you but then, that is what life is about. It can't always be the same.