Thursday, July 08, 2021 The drives home are always a blend of excitement and remorse. I struggle with all the things I could have done, the places I didn’t see, the fish I didn’t catch. I seem to instantly forget what I feel so completely when I am there: the gratitude of the moment, the grace of RIGHT NOW.

I spent several hours at the Northern Great Lakes Visitors Center in Ashland, Wisconsin. It was well worth it. From the geology of the Canadian Shield, the Native American culture and loss, the economy and trials of early settlers, the whole history of this place I have come to love was laid out.

I stopped at Escanaba, drawn by another hotel and the thought of that breakfast in the morning. As the sun fell, the traffic on US 41 roared in my ears and I couldn't believe just three nights ago I was swinging on a point in the middle of nowhere.

As I pulled into my drive, the girls rushed out to greet me, and I was almost overcome by tears. I don't desrve this, but I will spend every day trying to earn it.