Lane Change

One of the great mysteries of our life is how the Gardener and I found each other on a hot September afternoon, a few short weeks after our wedding.

Picture a busy network of expressways in the heart of Chicago. Rush hour. We were moving 1000 miles from home. We were 22. This was the first big road trip where I was the driver. The Gardener paved the way in the u-haul van, carrying all our worldly possessions. I followed in our yellow vw bug, keeping close tabs the whole long drive. No cell phones of course. We were nearing our destination when a sudden need for a lane change to exit onto another expressway caused us to part ways. I wasn't quick enough making the change--or maybe I couldn't with the traffic patterns. I remember the sick feeling in my stomach as I watched that van head up the ramp over me onto another expressway while I headed in a different direction. How would we ever connect again?

That's the end of the story. We both remember that time well, but our memories stop right at this point. We have no idea how we found each other, but we did (obviously) and we know we found each other that day. The Gardener told the story to someone the other day, labeling it "one of the great mysteries." A whole lot to remember has occurred in our lives since that time. Maybe when I'm 80 the rest of the story will come back to me. 

The photo: Heading out in that vw bug to one of my favorite jobs--public health nurse. That's my summer uniform.