On the Road to MO

On the road again...

Prologue:
I put away my blogging hat once I returned from Scotland last summer - probably because the title of my Blog is so accurate. I really am always on the go. As a teacher, my schedule seems to get so full during the school year that I forget that writing is one of the things that brings me joy - and yes - even helps me make sense out of life. As my husband says, "Writing is thinking." So here I am, facing another summer of possibilities and hoping I can take the time to write about thoughts, experiences, and life in a way that offers clarity, humanity, insight - and maybe a little humor.

The demolition and work on the theatre has begun.

This summer has started the way many others have - my school year bleeds into June as I prepare for Spotlight Showcase and start rehearsals for the Children's Theatre I run in the summers. But this year because of building construction, we have no place to perform. It was a bit of a welcomed break, however, because I am rehearsing the show my theatre students will be taking to Edinburgh, Scotland in August. Instead of working with 2nd graders through high schoolers, I found myself scrambling for rehearsal space for our Showcase Medley of Beauty and the Beast and a potential rehearsal and performance space where we might preview our Scotland show (Hearts Like Fists) before we take it abroad.

Our cast of Beauty and the Beast on the stage of the State Theatre
in Minneapolis for Spotlight Awards

Rehearsing Hearts Like Fists at Sandhill Center for the Arts.

With some generous help from our Community Ed Coordinator, a friend from Anoka Ramsey Community College, and Natalie Johnson's garage - we have pieced together a rehearsal schedule in three different spaces, and secured a spot for a Bon Voyage show. My summer began as I took over the family Suburban with lugging stage blocks and costumes from space to space.

The Cast of Hearts Like Fists

Rehearsal at Sandhill Center for the Arts

On the Road:
With all of that in the works - I scheduled in some time to take a road trip back to Missouri to visit Mom. I had hoped it wouldn't be a solitary drive, but it turns out the rest of my family is as busy as I am - so yesterday I gassed up the Prius and hit the road - solo.

Highway 63 North just before the Stadium Blvd. Exit for the Shepherd neighborhood I grew up in. 

There is something to be said about taking a long road trip by yourself. It afforded something I found I'd been missing - time to think. As the city of Minneapolis melted into suburbs and then countryside, the 500 mile drive helped me find a piece of myself that had been hiding, or maybe just neglected. I allowed my mind to wander into memories, stretch out to the future, and value the present. As a metaphor for life, a road trip is good one.

Mom's ficus tree - after the storm

Over the 8 1/2 hour drive, I experienced all kinds of weather. I powered through a rainstorm near Mason City that almost made me pull off the road. I could barely see the tail lights of the car in front of me or the white lines beside me. As in life, I experienced the fear of not feeling in control - of not seeing the path clearly - of questioning my decisions at each curve. In the midst of the storm, my focus had to be on what was in front of me. When the storm finally broke, I felt my muscles relax and my confidence return.

This trip also gave me time to listen to much of the music in my phone's music library. I haven't really just sat and listened to music for pure enjoyment in a very long time. The Prius is a small car, but it held the voices of Alison Karauss, Aretha Franklin, Bonnie Raitt, Brandi Carlile, Cyndy Lauper, Liza Minnelli, Sutton Foster, The Dixie Chicks, Indigo Girls, Jennifer Knapp, Jewell, Martina McBride, Mary Chapin Carpenter, Nanci Griffith, Sara Bareilles, and hundreds of Broadway belters. I thought about my world recently, and how that may be exactly what I'd been missing - the voices of strong women with passionate stories to tell. Because even though women have been writing, and singing, and creating since time began, we are still struggling to be heard.

It made me think of the extraordinary moment in Tony Awards history the week before - where  Hadestown won the first Tony award in history led by an all female principal team. Director Rachel Chavkin's impassioned speech nailed it: "...we heal ourselves through song and through each other...Life is a team sport and so is walking out of Hell. It's about whether you can keep faith when you are made to feel alone...I wish I wasn’t the only woman directing a musical on Broadway this season. There are so many women who are ready to go, there are so many artists of color who are ready to go. And we need to see that racial diversity and gender diversity reflected in our critical establishment too. This is not a pipeline issue. It is a failure of imagination by a field whose job is to imagine the way the world could be. So let’s do it.”

And that made me think of the strong woman I was on my way to see. The first memory I have is  being rocked in a rocking chair and hearing my mother's voice singing to me. She raised me up, never doubting I could succeed at anything I set my mind to. She went to college, she worked, she volunteered, she raised children, she taught kindness, she told us stories, she sang us songs, she took us to the basement and held us tight until the storms had passed over - and she taught us - no matter how it might feel, we are never on the road alone.

Mom and I looked at some photos together my first night home, and read some of her diary entries.

Mom's backyard garden after the rain

Mom's backyard garden after the rain

Home sweet home

Lessons Learned:

1. After the storm, the clarity returns and the windshield is cleaner, and even when you get hit with the back spray from a giant semi-truck, you know you can make it farther down the road.

2. You're never alone when you have the company of good, strong women.

3. It's a journey to go home, but it's worth it when mom is there to welcome you in.