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The Twelve Hour Drive to Philadelphia

There is no moral to this story.  No thoughtful insight.  I simply need to record it to remember it.  It's one of those moments where I think "man, I'm a pretty good mom sometimes".

Yesterday, Johannah left for a HOBY Leadership Seminar in Philadelphia.  You can look back through the years of blogging to see the seminars that both Ethan and Mark attended.  I must admit, these seminars changed the boys' lives.  Seriously.  They came back confident and having a better idea of who they are and what they want to become.

This year, the one for our region (Central PA HOBY) was already filled by the time I called, but I discovered that the PA East HOBY still had openings.  No problem--I drive to Philadelphia every week.  This will certainly be nothing new.

So, last Wednesday, I took the girls to their lessons in Philadelphia.  It was the standard eight hours, round-trip.

On Friday, we drove down to Philadelphia to catch Mark row at the Dad Vail Regatta.  We drove home on Saturday.  Actually, John drove the entire way which was a relief to me.

This past Tuesday, I drove Johannah down to Philly for her viola lesson.  Last one before her teacher heads off on tour to China with the Philadelphia Orchestra.

Johannah had a concert at the high school Wednesday night which didn't end until 9:45.  We decided to get up early the next morning to get her to Philly by the 9 a.m. HOBY registration deadline.  When I say early, I mean 4:15 a.m.

We were out the door by 4:26, four minutes early!  20 minutes later, Hannah was reading through her HOBY emails on her iphone when she discovered that she was supposed to arrive in "business casual" dress.  She had the clothes for the other days, but she was in a t-shirt and jeans.  We turned right around, picked up the clothes at home and headed back out.

Thankfully, we got to Temple University by 8:45 with Hannah dressed and ready to go.  It's a "stop and drop" kind of a thing, so I just pulled up, we got her luggage out, a quick kiss goodbye, and I hit "Go Home" on the GPS.

I seriously had a funny feeling that Hannah had left something in the car.  Cue doomsday music.  Dun, dun, duuuuuuunnnnn....

At 10:15 a.m., I was exhausted and pulled over at a rest stop to take a short nap.  I was only about 90 minutes from home.  One hour later, I woke up and decided to run in and get something to eat.  I reached behind my seat to get my purse, and what did I feel?  Johannah's iPhone.  The iPhone that is supposed to serve as her camera, and her alarm clock, and that holds her only copy of a receipt for her return trip on Megabus on Sunday (I had too many things to do at church to go and pick her up).

I was sick to my stomach.  I knew she needed that phone, but I also knew that I was over half-way home.  Going back to give her the phone, I would have to face the traffic that surrounds Philly, and then drive through downtown.  Again.

I gave myself a Burger King chicken sandwich's worth of time to make the decision.  Most of the reasons I could ignore, but her not having a phone when she had to catch a taxi, and a bus in Philly to get back to State College on Sunday night?  I couldn't handle the thought.

I drove 11 more miles in the wrong direction on the turnpike, got off on the exit where I head for home, and turned around.

Two hours later, I was dropping off the phone at the dorm at Temple with my car parked in the handicapped spot with my flashers on.  It was that, or park a mile away, walk in, and pay $10/hour.  When the ladies didn't seem to want to take care of getting the phone to her, I explained my driving dilemma, and they were thankfully sympathetic.  They took care to take care of her phone.

Five minutes later, I was back on the road with a four hour drive ahead of me.  I still had to get OUT of Philadelphia.

Twelve hours later, at 4:35 p.m., I pulled into our driveway.  I must have looked like a zombie, because I certainly FELT like a zombie.  However, when Hannie called that night, worried that her phone had been stolen, I was so happy to hear the relief in her voice that I had not only found her phone, but it was waiting for her at the front desk.

As I frequently remind myself in these kinds of situations, this is my job.  Being a mom.  It's not always easy, but it's always worth it.

Comments

  1. Larisa you ARE a good mom. Seriously. And you have good kids. Thats what makes it worth it! So good job you! Oh and I suppose John helped a little too!! ;)

    ReplyDelete
  2. Yep mama, we kids would literally not be able to function without you! I can't imagine what I would have done through high school had I not had a good Mommy to lean on and rely on. THanks for all you do and we love you!

    ReplyDelete

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