On Saturday I spent the morning and early afternoon shopping and cooking. I didn’t want my mom or Jenn to have to cook, so I made: three quiches with leeks, spinach, gruyere, and soprasata, five pounds of turkey chili, and a butternut squash lasagna. I also prepped two cauliflowers for roasting. (I just sprinkle the cut cauliflower with tumeric, curry, garam masala, black pepper, salt, and lots of olive oil.) By the time the food was made and stowed, it was time to pack.
Abe and I didn’t want to check any bags, so we packed pretty light. I tried to figure out a way to bring War and Peace with me because I’m re-reading it for the fifth time, but it is too bulky and looks pretentious. I tried to figure out what would look a little more normal on the beach, but couldn’t find anything that I would rather be reading. I decided I would spend my free time meditating instead.
We had a little drama preparing to leave. Jenn was flying in from Seattle Saturday night, and at one point winter storms rerouted her through Denver. It looked for a minute like she would not be in Salt Lake until Monday. She called and set an unforgettable example of staying calm in crisis. This is what she said: “Ok, it looks like the worst has happened, but don’t worry! We’ll figure it out.” She said that in her signature voice, and with that phrase she made family history. We have been repeating it to each other ever since as a reminder to ourselves to stay calm when things look crazy.
She figured it out and was to our house by 1am. Abe and I left at 4:30am, so it was a short night of sleep. We loved every minute of it though because we were cuddling on our couch and felt so happy and excited to be shortly leaving on vacation together.
