Ladybug, Ladybug, Fly Away Home

Swarms of voracious ladybug imposters cover the trailer and all the doors into the house. While they are the subject of nursery rhymes, they should instead have stories told about them by the Grimm brothers. Envision a sweet little red bug with friendly black spots, and gaping jaws with dripping saliva. They make it impossible to spend anytime outside, and since they have enveloped the camper, packing for the next trip is fraught with peril. Last year we spent a few days vacuuming hundreds up from inside the camper - I hope to avoid that this year…

This morning I backed our giant truck into the nearly empty lot of the library, trying twice to get it between the lines. They hadn't laid out the spots for a vehicle as wide as the giant truck so it just barely fit. My little carry bag had my tablet as well as a written out copy of the writing assignment. It was writing club today!

I entered the library with a bit of trepidation - after making such personal revelations last week I wondered if I'd feel the effects. I try to ignore and fight stigma, but I know it exists.

We sat in the back corner of the library, chairs arranged in a loose circle. A copy of "Parrots for Dummies" jumps out at me from the shelf to my left, its yellow cover screaming out for further investigation.  Some sat on hard backed chairs, while others had gotten there early enough to snag big, comfy armchairs with little tables built in. I was one of the comfy ones - I did feel slightly guilty at being a newcomer and snagging a chair. After some initial chit chat we started reading our stories about the 'Golden Years'. Some had written about retirement, while others wrote about grandchildren and the activities they are doing now. I wrote about retiring. My hands were sweaty, and my voice shook a bit as I read my story (to be posted at a later date) - hopefully reading aloud to a group will become easier as each week passes. I suspect it will.

After the meeting, I sidled up to Heather and asked her if she would like to meet for coffee sometime. Better still, we'd go out for lunch today! As we stood around talking with a few other people, I felt like I was becoming part of the group. It felt good. I hadn't felt any stigma from anyone, quite the contrary - I felt welcomed - any everyone laughed at my jokes!

We drove through the village, slaloming around manhole covers, and other mid-construction impediments, till we got to George's, our local eatery. Over coffee and soup we yakked and yakked, getting to know each other. I'm loving this writing group thing!

Yesterday started a string of days that promise to be the nicest days of September, and wouldn't you know it, we had to come home. I did check to see if there had been any cancellations on our site, but no such luck. Still, if you have to tear down to come home, it is much more pleasant to do it in the sun!

As soon as we got home we got ourselves cleaned up and headed into town. Carm visited his mom, while I dropped in on my brother. A busy day for sure, but it was excellent to reconnect with family. There was a tapestry of color along the highway. Brilliant reds predominated.

We write to taste life twice, in the moment and in retrospect. ~Anaïs Nin