TIME GOES BY MAKE THE MOST OF IT

We’ve been planning the fishing trip since last Fall. I was really excited about it. Believe it or not, I’ve never fished before. And I was looking forward to a new experience. I don’t eat fish which makes it even weirder I guess.

But the fact is I haven’t had a vacation in years and god knows I need one. I’m worn out from the daily grind and the long train ride into the city every day. The noise, the crowds, the non-stop pressure every day.

 I haven’t seen my friend Mildred in years. Actually, now that I think about it I haven’t seen her since the year we graduated from college. We both attended Temple University. I majored in Art Education and she was an Art History major. She has been asking me for years to go camping and fishing with her. She spent every summer of her childhood living in a cabin out in the woods and fishing and swimming. In fact, in college, she swam competitively. Why she’s practically a fish herself.

I’ve never been much of an outdoorsman or should I say outdoor’s woman. In fact, I wasn’t even a girl scout. I never slept outside or swam in a lake or fished. Never cooked hotdogs on an open fire or sang campfire songs with my friends. I spent most of my childhood sitting in front of the TV. My idea of an outdoor experience was walking downtown and buying a Slurpee or a donut at the bakery. I guess you could say I was somewhat of a sedentary kid.

Anyway, here I am in the middle years of my life and I received a call from my college friend, Mildred out of the blue. As soon as I picked up the phone and she said, “hey, Leona long time, no see, no talk. I am planning on going camping for a week and I would just love it if you came along. Just you and I like old times. What do you say?”

“Mildred, I can’t believe it’s you. The weirdest thing is that I’ve been thinking about you for the past few months. I don’t know why I didn’t just pick up the phone and call you. I can’t believe almost thirty years have gone by since we graduated from college. And that we are both fifty years old.

“Yeah, that’s kind of a bitter pill to swallow, getting old and looking older. But, hey I’ve still got a lot of life left in me. So, I was sitting here thinking about what can I do to celebrate the years I have left and stop mourning the youth I’ve left behind me. And that’s when I thought about you and all the fun we had together in college and what a blast we could have taken a trip together doing something we’ve never done together before. What do you think? Are you up for it?”

“Yes, I’m up for it, absolutely. Where did you have in mind, Mildred?”

“A great camping location, Nockanmixon State Park. There is swimming, hiking, biking, and fishing and they have affordable cabins to rent there. I haven’t been there since I was a kid but I loved it so much we used to go almost every year.

“Really, that does sound great. I’m afraid I’m a little out of shape so you’ll have to take it easy on me at first. When do you want to go? I’ll have to give my employers at least a couple of weeks of notice. But it shouldn’t be a problem since I haven’t taken a vacation in years. I guess I’m a bit of a workaholic and overachiever.”

“Well, I look forward to catching up. So, let’s make plans for the first week of June. It won’t be too hot, or too wet. And it shouldn’t be crowded that early in the season. How about giving me a call after you talk to your employer.”

“Wow, I’m really getting excited. I’ll call you as soon as I talk to my boss.”

“Great I look forward to hearing from you soon. And then I’ll make the reservations. Remember to bring hiking boots, make sure you break them in before you arrive, and comfortable clothes and warm pajamas because the nights there can be quite chilly in June. And you might want to bring a sleeping bag. There’s a small grocery store not too far from the camp so after we meet up, we’ll go get food and anything else we might need. I hope I’ll hear from you soon. “

“Well, Mildred hearing from you has really lifted my spirits. I was feeling like I was in a rut. This is going to be great. I’ll call you as soon as I arrange the time off. Bye for now.” And that’s when I heard her hang up and I remembered that Mildred hated saying goodbye. I wondered if she was still the same old Mildred I knew in college or if she had settled into her middle years. I hope she was the still wild, funny, and intelligent Mildred I knew so long ago. My heart was beating so fast, I haven’t had anything to look forward to in so long. I couldn’t wait.

But before I knew it the weeks flew by and it was the day before I left to go on the camping trip with Mildred. I wondered if I would even recognize her. I checked and rechecked everything in my bag and in the trunk. I had purchased hiking boots and I had worn them almost nonstop since I bought them even to work. Every day one of my fellow workers made fun of me because I was wearing hiking boots with work clothes. But I just ignored them. I knew, in the end, I would appreciate breaking them in so my feet wouldn’t be killing me the whole time we were camping and hiking.

Six and a half hours later I arrived at the entrance of the Nockanmixon State Park. I called Mildred a half hour ago and told her when I would be arriving. I pulled into a parking spot out front. and I could see a middle-aged woman frantically waving at me. I waved back. I hoped it was Mildred but it was hard to believe because the woman I was waving at hair was completely white. The closer I got to her the more I saw the resemblance to my old friend. Albeit a bit older looking, but no doubt the same in every other way I hoped.

I opened up the gate and Mildred came running over to me and gave me the biggest, tightest hug I’ve had in ten years. And then she stepped back and looked me up and down and said,” I would have recognized you anywhere. A little older, but wiser no doubt. I’m so glad you were able to come and spend the week with me. You can not imagine how much I’ve been looking forward to this trip.”

“Well, Mildred I could say the same of you except for that beautiful white hair. Only you would be improved by aging. You look fabulous.”

“You are a sight for sore eyes, Leona, a sight for sore eyes. I have thought of you so many times over the years. I wish I had called you before. But we’re here now and that’s all that matters. Well, let me direct you to our cabin. It’s just a short walk from here. Why don’t you grab your stuff and bring it with you? After we spend some time getting reacquainted we’ll take a short drive to the store and buy whatever we need.

Mildred kept a running commentary while we hiked up to the cabin which turned out to be a little further than I anticipated. And I was a little out of breath when I arrived. I guess I was a bit out of shape since I got very little exercise at my job unless you call rolling around on my chair in my office adequate exercise. I was silently getting anxious about all the hiking we would be doing.

“Leona, you’re awfully quiet. Are you alright?”

“Yes, I’m alright. It was just a long drive and I had trouble falling asleep last night since I was so excited about coming here. I guess I’m a little out of breath too.”

“Oh, well we’ll take it easy the first couple of days until you get your sea legs so to speak. And then we’ll take some more difficult trails. This is going to be so much fun. “

By the time I saw the little cabin come into view I was completely winded and sweating. I had never been so happy in my life as the moment that cabin came into view. I said out loud, ” thank you, dear god, we finally arrived.”

Mildred took a look at me and laughed. “We here now so you can take a rest. I also packed us a little lunch and brought some drinks with me in the cooler. And then maybe we’ll bring our stuff into the cabin while we’re at it. “

“Ok, sure we should bring our stuff in now, eat and take a little nap, I’ll be a new woman by then and we can then go to the little store and pick up some groceries. It’s all good I’ll be fine by then.” And then we began lugging all our stuff into the cabin. “Excuse me, I have to make a quick stop at the lady’s room.” When I came out Mildred had everything organized and was still brimming with energy. Alrighty then, why don’t you take a little nap, and I’ll take a little hike and get the lay of the land. What do you say?”

“I say, sounds like a plan. I’ll take a little nap and you go check things out. Be careful and don’t go too far. I’ll see you in a little bit. I’m sure I will be feeling fine by then. I turned and walked into the door on the right and laid down on a twin-size bed with my feet hanging over the edge. And I fell immediately into a deep sleep. When I woke up I had brain fog which happens every time I take a nap in the middle of the day.

When I woke up I didn’t recognize where I was right away. And then I remembered I was out in the middle of the woods with my old college roommate, Mildred. I thought it would do me good to go into the bathroom and throw water on my face. And then I went back out of the main room and looked around. It wasn’t a huge space but it was clean and neat. It looked like the couch was comfortable. The kitchen was small but well-equipped as advertised. Nothing in the fridge box of baking soda.

I called out to Mildred but she didn’t answer, so I walked over to the door and looked out. And there she was in all her glory. And believe it or not, she was chopping wood with an ax. I couldn’t have lifted up that ax and swung that ax if my life depended upon it. I said, “Good Lord” out loud. and Mildred says, “well, hi roomie. I’m glad you’re up and about. As soon as I clean up a bit we can take a ride to the little store I told you about. What do you say?”

“I say, all right, let’s be on our way shall we?”

“Yes, let’s and while we’re driving there we can catch up.”

We made our way over to Mildred’s car and hopped in. Well, I didn’t hop in, it was more like I flopped in. About twenty minutes later Mildred pulled into a parking spot in front of the smallest food store I’ve ever seen. But, I had quite a surprise when upon opening the door I saw shelves and shelves of any kind of food you would ever need or want. And the store owner called out,” we just got some fresh deer meat in this very morning.”

Mildred said, ” this is our lucky day Leona.”

“Sorry, Mildred, I have been a vegetarian for the past twenty-five years. I’ll stick with vegetables and grains and beans.”

“You’re kidding? Why do you used to eat more hamburgers than the whole dorm put together? And now you don’t eat meat, Leona?”

“Yes, that’s right, no meat, no eggs, no cheese, no milk, or any mild product.”

“Well, I would have thought you would be in better shape than.” And then she let out a big guffaw.

“Yeah, thanks, Mildred. I think I’ll take a look around at what’s available that I can eat.”

“Alright, Mildred. I’m going to order a pound of that deer meat. You don’t know what you’re missing.”
“Yes, Mildred I do. I ate meat for years.”

About fifteen minutes later. we were ready to check out. We split the bill and were on our way. In about twenty minutes we were back at the cabin. We brought all the groceries in and put them away. And Mildred made some ice tea and handed me a glass. And we both took a long drink and I thought now what?”

“So, Leona how about filling me in on what you have been doing all these years. Any husband in sight, kids?”

“Well, I got close a couple of times, but it just never happened. I can’t say I have any regrets I was never one of those women that wanted to have a husband and a house full of kids. I have a successful career and am about to become a partner in the firm I work for. I bought a townhouse about sixteen years ago and I’m quite content with my job and home. I have a lot of friends at work and we go out a couple of times a month for dinner. I have taken two cruises, one to Europe and one to South America. How about you?”

” Well, I was married for a couple of years, but it didn’t work out. He was something of a control freak and I have a tendency to be something of a loose cannon at times. Since I get an idea and my head and can’t stop until I do what I want to do. He didn’t like that and after a while, he started looking for someone else I found out about it and filed for divorce. He has since married again and has three kids and his wife doesn’t work. She’s a stay-at-home mom. Which is fine but not for me. I travel all the time with my job and am hardly home. I love my job it is challenging and I am in line to get a big promotion this year. to vice-president.”

Well, it seems like Mildred that we do have some things in common. And that we are both content in the lives that we have built for ourselves. And I’m happy to hear that. 

“Me, too Leona, me too. We’re a couple of career women. But, let me tell you I think we both like to have some fun too. And that is what we’re going to be doing this week. We are going to swim, hike, fish, well, maybe you won’t want to fish but you can just relax and rest up for all the hiking we’re going to be doing. Are you up for a little hike today or would you like to wait until tomorrow?”

“Well, Mildred I vote for taking it easy the rest of the day and maybe reminiscing about our college days. What do you say?”

“I say, let’s. I was just thinking about Liz Beaumont a couple of months ago. And then the weirdest thing happened I ran into her. At Target no less. She and I were standing in line for prescriptions and she was in line in front of me and I was talking to the person behind me. And she heard my voice and turned around and yelled at the top of her voice, ” Is that Leona Peppard I hear? And I said, “Yes, it is.” And she came over to me and practically hugged me to death. Remember those hugs she gave us?”

“Oh yeah, I do. I swear one time she hugged me so hard she broke one of my ribs. God, what a character she was.”

“Anyway, after we got our prescriptions we decided to go have lunch together and we talked and talked for hours. Turns out she is involved in politics and is running for office. And she asked me to come and volunteer for her. And so, I’ve been doing that. It turns out that we are both Progressives and she has some of the same goals as I do. “

“Wow, you just never know what will happen to people. Do you remember Joey Santoni? I ran into him at a local bar. And guess what he was the bouncer? Can you believe it? He was athletic but I thought he was going to have a career in football. “

“You’re right, Leona. I never did get around to asking him what happened. But, he’s a nice gun. But, maybe he took too many blows to the head.”

“Well, you never know what’s going to happen in anyone’s life. I did hear that Marilyn Curtis was killed in a car accident on the interstate highway in Pa. a few years ago. You’re right you just don’t know what can happen at any given time. Life is short we should enjoy it while we can. Let’s talk about what we want to do this week, shall we?”

And they spent the next week, hiking, swimming, getting sunburned, and eating good food. They decided that they should get together for a week every year and take a vacation to a different exotic location. Next year they were going to go on a photographic safari to Africa since during their conversations they both talked about their love of photography. Their camping trip was a complete success and they both agree to get together after all these years was the best decision they have ever made.

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