The Lakes

The last post on this blog was written when I was ALL UP in my feelings, it seems necessary to post something less EXTRA for balance.

Today is a packing day, and there have been far too few packing days lately so that the simple act of gathering things to throw in a weekend bag feels momentous. Tomorrow we will travel to Lake Tippecanoe, one a cluster of lakes in northern Indiana and where my mother-in-law has a small condo and a pontoon boat.

A holiday weekend on a lake should pleasant, even during a quarantine.

Feeling secure in the negative results from the COVID tests that we took this week, we still want to minimize risk this weekend. No gatherings, six feet from everyone outside our little pod, masks in public at all times. Physically my MIL is quite healthy but this virus is horrible so we want to be as careful as possible.

Typically I am not enthusiastic about spending extended periods of time with my MIL. Her sense of humor includes mocking and teasing that triggers me in all the worst ways.

However, in the last couple of years, her memory has been deteriorating, which is sad in every way except one. The last few times we have been with her, she has forgotten to say mean things to me.

The change of scenery will be a welcome respite for everyone, and time spent near water is always good for human souls. There is every reason to believe that this weekend will be a mental break — the good kind of break — for everyone.