I knew I missed Arizona, but I didn’t realize how much I missed Arizona. Our first stop after leaving the Phoenix airport was to head to Filibertos for a breakfast burrito, but forgetting their monstrous size was a wasteful, rookie mistake. Full, and tired from the early morning journey from Austin, we made the sluggish commute in an unfamiliar rental car through the desert, then ponderosa forest, enjoying the changing biodiversity en route to Flagstaff.
After moving to Texas almost three years ago our environment has been limited to humid hill country, with sprawling live oak trees and oppressive heat, lacking in the sharp peaks and valleys that we had grown accustomed to in Washington, Alaska, and Arizona. I’ve grown fond of my life in Texas, with friends and neighborhood familiarity, a good library job and routine, but I’m out of contact with the outdoors and it pains me. I feel unmoored. We try to get out of town to neighboring cities for concerts, festivals and outings, but overcompensating with cultural activities isn’t grounding in any meaningful way. So we’ve traveled further away to inspire awe.
While living in Texas we have had the privilege of visiting London, Dublin and New York City, and none of them, with all their treasures, heritage, and architectural mastery, have matched the natural beauty of Arizona. As much as I love a good museum in a major city, nothing beats gawking at a 1 mile-wide meteor crater with friends, or a gondola ride to the top of a mountain in Flagstaff with the sweet, excited children you’ve known since birth. A hot trek around Sedona for an aura reading with your best girls is sometimes exactly what is needed to achieve balance. Clutching selenite in a mineral shop to clear blocked energy sometimes works!!
Perhaps what I’ve been missing most are the deep connections we’ve built with dear friends over the years, connections that are severed when we receive orders. As a military spouse, I’ve quietly grieved the loss of roots and long-term community for nearly 12 years. I surrendered my stability to support a service member and the consequences of that decision continue to challenge my concept of place and belonging, and they’re beginning to do the same to my children. It can be very painful. But in a period of doubt and insecurity for us all, there is no better way to restore balance than to return to a place that brings joy, inspires awe, and fosters connection to dear friends. Even if just for a four-day. Thank you Arizona, and Austins!
The Pioneer Barn, separate from the main building, contains loads of artifacts of yesteryear – I especially enjoyed spotting a large floor loom. It was warped with a project on it. I wish I were able to identify all the features of various looms on the spot. I need to crack open a few more books and click around a few more websites before I can do that.
This was such a spontaneous trip. Isaac just finished up a class at work, and gets to take a month of leave. We suddenly have a few weeks of family time, but we’re locked down at home with Margot’s dance and soccer commitments which start up after Labor Day. Which reminds me of this awesome episode of 
The Grand Canyon National Park system is completely immense.There had to be a thousand people crawling around the South Rim. A multitude of languages and accents wafted around, mixing with the sounds of camera lenses snapping. Bored children and teenagers dragged their feet, while Baby Boomers crowded the railings and hogged the views. It was hot, and my kids were unappreciative of our beautiful country, and above all else, there weren’t any trails to take my kids on in the short amount of time we were there.
Happy travels around Arizona.
Yea Yea Pueblo 