To Texas and Back for Terry

Seems like I've done this before. Only that time Corrie and I drove, and this time I flew alone. It wasn't always going to be me flying all by me onesie. We tried to figure out the best times to make the drive---with the kids and the foster kittens but probably not Picasso---and then tried to wrap our head around having Cass and me fly back so we could get top school and work respectively. 

In the end, we went in a different direction.

One of Corrie's family's close friends, a young man who was raised in part by Ron and Carol, a young man whom Corrie calls brother and whom I've written about before, lost his mother very recently. He asked me to be a pall bearer and I accepted, and it was in that moment that I knew I had to go, to at least represent the entire Long Beach contingent.

It turns out that it has been fifteen (15!) years since I traveled alone. Cass wasn't even born yet. The flight there was nice and easy, the flight home was equally peaceful, and cruising around airports without children in tow was interesting, if a little weird. Highlighting how much I'm around the kids: they both sobbed themselves to sleep once they learned I would be gone for a few days. That made me feel good, like I'm doing something right.

I stayed at Joey's, as did Carol, Peter, Mary and her twin daughters. For a few days, after in-town-living Stephanie came by and dropped off her son, Miles (six-months older than the twins), it was me and Carol and the kids, with Pete trying to catch up on sleep. Corrie used to talk about being an Auntie was great---you get to have fun with the kids, then give them back. This was the first time this ever happened for me. It's not like the kids are scared of me in the other moments when we've been chilling, but that there have always been other people around that they're more familiar with. Not this time! They got fun Uncle Pat time, and I got to play with kids, bond, and then hand them off.

Miles

At these ages (2 and 2.5 years old), getting them to giggle and chase after me is easy and fun.

Brooklyn

That's one of the main memories of this trip: getting to play cool Uncle Pat. I got to meet Chris's girlfriend, Beth, and she's great, and got to support Chris and the rest of his family. I got to see Terry, his mother, at peace at the viewing. I got to provide support to the family through humor, cooking, and love...?

I didn't get any pictures with Addison, but she did enjoy being thrown high in the air. 

The air in Austin, or technically Pflugerville, was heavy with humidity, moist and hot. It was frankly miserable. The kind of air that made you squint and grimace even when it was dark out. But the trip was so quick, and now, a few days after returning, it has receded into the memory banks and is close to resembling a dream.

Made the trip because of a death; celebrated a life lived and the youth of the future. It was special.