A couple of days before New Year’s Eve, I made a last-minute decision to change our road trip to Santa Fe, NM. My soul was craving downtime. As we drove along 1-40 and then north on 295, my mind relaxed as I watched the passing terrain. I needed physical and mental space to declutter my thoughts and reassess everything.
On our first night in Santa Fe, we order a to-go dinner from the Apothecary restaurant. My son ordered a buffalo burger with feta fries, and I had roasted tomato bisque with a salad. The food was fresh and delicious.
The next day, we ordered takeout breakfast from Cafe Pasqual’s of warm buttery pancakes, turkey bacon, and potatoes. Following breakfast, my son asked to drive to the Ski Santa Fe and explore the walking trails near the ski lodge.
As we walked along the trails near the Ski Santa Fe ski lodge, as the wind raced through the majestic trees, I paused to cherish the calmness of the moment. With each step, I examined my fears, some inherited, that have influenced my decisions.
With the disruption of normalcy, I made a choice to no longer allow these fears to silence my goals and dreams. I asked the mountain for strength to name these fears, and then the courage and determination to push past these fears to reach my writing goals. I sought the encouragement to fully express myself as a poet. With the release of Proper Grey Areas, it felt a release of creative energy.
Our trip was short, three days total. On our return, we slept in my son’s truck at a Love’s Travel Stop which my son thought was cool.
I think about our trip and creatively refreshed I feel since our return. I have tentatively penciled in another short road trip in March. Keeping my fingers crossed that we can revisit the mountains.