Quality Mother-Daughter Time

My mom and I made the drive up to Denver Memorial Day weekend. We divided the distance into two days of driving, stopping in Amarillo for the night. A real mother-daughter road trip, spending quality time together before I set out on my own. Sunday morning in Amarillo we wake up early to go hiking in Palo Duro Canyon. Before I left San Marcos, I asked some friends from the Panhandle what's worth seeing in Amarillo, and Palo Duro Canyon was at the top of that list. True beauty of the Panhandle region. It was sort of unexpected really, the whole region has a rugged and desolate feel, but out in the middle of seemingly nowhere, there is a giant whole in the ground. I've been to the Grand Canyon several times, and it's not like that - it's Texan. It has a unique feel of it's own, one that is amplified as a result of being the lone attraction near Canyon, Texas. There's not much else nearby, they named an entire town in it's honor. Miles around Palo Duro Canyon hold nothing but land, lots and lots of empty land. Land for farming and land for cattle. Then you drive a little further and reach a magnificent, beautiful hole in the ground. You are all alone, save a few grandparents taking their families on cross-country RV trips. But as you walk down into the canyon, you are alone. My mom and I hike for about an hour, stopping to take in the beauty of being all alone in nature. The silence is so loud you can hear it.
I enjoy this time with my mom. We have no plans, only a destination, and it's okay to leave a little late and take a detour or two. But it's time to get on the road because we are meeting Dan and Nicole for dinner she says.

Dan and Nicole used to work for my mom when they were in graduate school at Baylor. They live outside of Denver in a suburb called Parker where they have a 4 year old named Hadley and a 1 year old named Braxton.

We drive through the rest of the Panhandle and I take in my last breaths of Texas air and think to myself how I'm going to miss the Lone Star State for the next two and a half months.

Crossing into New Mexico, the scenery immediately changes into a distinctly South Western style. Stucco houses with Terra-cotta roofs spot the edges of the deserted highway. Signs that are faded mark the few restaurants in the ghost-like towns.

Entering Colorado brings brisk, clean air that is palpable. Mountains stand tall like gates, telling me I have arrived.

I drive most of the trip because I feel like this is a time for me to go at it on my own. I felt like I needed to be the one to pull the car away from the curb outside my house in Hewitt, and likewise I felt like I needed to be the one to drive into the City of Denver.

We navigate our way into Parker to meet Dan, who is coaching a summer league basketball game. My mom and Dan catch up after the game and we follow Dan to grab dinner on the way home to meet Nicole and the kids.

Their home is in a nice neighborhood, but one I could never picture myself in. It felt very Stepford, too perfect, eerie almost. But we talk and enjoy dinner and catch up. I have not seen Dan and Nicole since I was 14 and they cannot believe how grown up I am.

Sunday my mom and I take Hadley to the park when we wake up to play hide-and-seek. I usually do not like kids much, but Hadley is sweet. Later my mom and I go for a bike ride on the bike paths nearby. The paths are concrete sidewalks that weave through this neighborhood park, going past a public pool and municipal building. It's a neat community for someone raising children, but it's not for me. I am excited to go to my new place in the afternoon.

We make our drive into the city limits of Denver, and I am excited to finally be here. The skyscrapers downtown stand off in the distance marking the center of the Great City of the West.

Whitney live near Glendale, a small city completely in the city limits of Denver. On a map Glendale is an exact rectangle, which strikes me as quite odd.

Whitney's house is a two story town home that reminds me of a cross between the stuck-together Victorians from Full House in San Francisco and my neighborhood in Hewitt. They are nice, but generic.

She greets my mom and I warmly and immediately gives us a tour of her home, making sure to show me exactly where everything I need is. I feel welcome, but at the same time like a burden. I move all my bags to the basement and am eager to set up my new room. But that will wait until after dinner.

I spend time with my mom and realize that we are getting along better than usual. We go to Target to get a few things that I need, but it turns out to be a bigger endeavor than we thought and barely make it back to pick up Whitney in time for dinner.

Encore restaurant is attached a bookstore and right across from East High School, a gorgeous old building on Coalfax Ave. Coalfax is like on of Denver's main arteries of traffic. I notice a disproportionate amount of Ethiopian restaurants and I can't wait to try one.

Dinner at Encore was nice, we sat on the patio because Denver weather is near perfect all the time. In Denver, at most restaurants it seems, when you get a glass of water at a restaurant, they don't put ice in it, I like that.

That night, I felt the necessity of establishing myself in this new place. I wanted to make myself at home at once and become as much a resident, however temporary it may be, as quickly as possible. I set up my closet, my plastic drawers and makeshift suitcase dresser to my liking as was satisfied.

This summer is supposed to be a time to refocus on myself, and what I want from life. I wanted to make the most of being in an environment foreign to me and re-center, read more, wake up early, get back into triathlon training, eat more raw vegetables, do all the things I said I would do back home 'if only I had the time.' Well here I have the time, and no distractions, and at the very least, I would dedicate myself to making the time.

I woke up the morning after my first night in my new neighborhood, and thought what better time to start than now. I knew running a mile high in the mountains would be difficult, but I told myself I could do it. I ran what I could, about a mile and a half and walked for what totaled a half hour. It felt like I was on the right track, doing something to make a change. I thought then it would last, but without effort, I slowly lowered my expectations.

My mom and I spent her last day in town by visiting the Botanic Gardens, taking tons of pictures. It was there, that a seed was planted in my mind, that for some amount of time in my life, I would work in a flower shop. When I get an idea in my head, they tend to stay there, firmly planted.

Mom and I had Thai food at Swing Thai near my house. We had one of the best 'quality mother-daughter dinners' we've ever had. Talking about leadership, something my mom takes very seriously. We brain stormed about what I could do the following school year at the paper, leading a staff of young, budding journalists. Inspiring them to be the best they can, both in their jobs and as people. Mom and I are a lot alike in many ways, both of us are dreamers - and we dream big, lofty goals. She can see the steps to get there, the steps that I just gloss over with my eyes set much further past step one. But she is trying to teach me, and for once, I am open to listening and learning from her best qualities. I can tell that I have grown a great deal from our many struggles through the past few years. I feel like I am at a good mindset to start my summer. Inspired, open, ready and without distraction.

She leaves the next day, and I am ready and excited to be on my own. Totally. Back at school, I am living on my own, but I have so many people around me I am never really alone. But now I am ready to make the most of my time in the city.