Road Warrior Widow Tips for Living with No Regrets
Phew! I gasp even as I type this blog today. My sweet ride (my trusty 2010 Buick Enclave – now at 130,000 miles) has been road tested to the nth degree over the last few weeks. Up to Tulsa for a funeral, back to Tulsa for another funeral, down to South Texas for two funerals, down to Austin to catch my grandson’s football game, back to Dallas for the Red River Rivalry of Texas vs Oklahoma and back to Frisco for a few days only to go back to Austin next week. People are amazed at my adventurous take-to-the-road spirit. I call myself a road warrior. I refuse to be bound by fear or concern. Goodness, how stale I could get if I just hung out at home all the time.
I was amused when my best friend called and asked “Where are you now?” I have to even ask myself that question when I wake up some mornings and I have to double-check to see what bed I’m in now. Some of my friends express amazement that I could be so brave to travel like I do – but it’s common-place for me. Just in case you may want to venture out and take to the road and be a road warrior, too, here are some of my “road warrior” tips.
~ #1 – I make sure my car is road worthy – tires’ air pressure where they need to be; being sure my car is serviced properly (oil changes and other fluids intact); being sure my AAA road service is up to date just in case of a towing need (I pray for my sweet ride and thank God for it every time I get behind the wheel!)
~ #2 — I pack up my little food basket with all kinds of munchies — nuts, fruits, pop-corn, crackers, and a big mug of iced water or tea, plus another mug of coffee. All of that “fuel” intake for the road helps keep me wide awake. I even make a plan for a little treat along the way – like a small, chocolate dipped ice cream cone from Dairy Queen or a pit stop at a rest area or truck stop to stretch or to grab my pillow and shut my eyes for 10 minutes or so. That’s all it takes to refresh and keep going.
~ #3 – I make sure I have great music to praise the Lord to or tap my fingers to and sing along with. Another road warrior stay-awake tip is listening to audiobooks – my favs are fiction Christian romance (I’m a hopeless romantic) or Christian action audiobooks. They keep me awake with anticipation about what’s going to happen next.
~ #4 – One of my favorite road warrior tips is to keep my eyes, ears and heart open in case God gives me a little nudge about what my next blog might be about. When that happens, I tap my cell phone voice memo button and record what that message might be.
The attached photos are from recent road trips and family outings. Brennan attends Regents School of Austin. I just had to see him play on Thursday. He is #7 and an amazing receiver. I loved seeing his team praying together after the game. The next day it was back to Dallas for the Red River Rivalry of Oklahoma Sooners vs Texas Longhorns. We were blessed with an amazing Longhorn family’s generosity to the eight of us! So no problem sitting with Longhorn fans. Our family may live in Texas but Oklahoma is in our hearts. Great family fun cheering our Sooners on to victory! Boomer Sooner!!
~ #5 — My last road warrior tip is not just on the road but in every place and every season of life, this widow warrior has come to “live on the edge with accepting the thrills that await me – taking on opportunities to share the love, embrace the precious people in my life and be fully confident in my trust in God”. He becomes our safety and our security. Because of Him, we can risk living life to the fullest and be all that we were created to be. He keeps us secure, even though life is often insecure, even though we get disappointed, even though the bottom falls out. We embrace the highs and we wait patiently for the lessons learned in the lows. Really – THAT is my #1 and most highly recommended Road and Life Warrior tip – for God to be your Road and Life security and ultimate confidence, too!
“For the Lord will be your confidence…” – Proverbs 3:26