PORTLAND — The question is inevitable as I make my way across the western United States and begin thinking about the return trip to my home in North Texas.
“How are you doing?” my friends and family members ask with the look of those who know the pain I am feeling.
My answer is truthful. “Oh … I’m OK.” They know I’m not really OK, but they understand the reason the shrug I give them and the look in my eyes.
But in truth, I actually am doing a bit better than just OK. It’s not a lot better, but it’s a little bit so.
I embarked on this venture to clear my head after my wife passed away suddenly in early February after getting a cancer diagnosis that knocked me for a loop … but which seemed in the moment to have been something Kathy Anne might have expected.
She was stoic and steadfast in her response to the doctor: “Let’s just get it out of there.”
I had to leave the house. So, I did. I am very close to the halfway point. Soon I’ll be turning my pickup around and heading toward the house.
My sense is that I’ll be able to walk into my Princeton home feeling a bit of emotional relief as a result of the time I have taken away.
To be sure, there are likely to be more of these ventures in my near and medium-term future. This one, though, has been fairly successful in that I have been able to accomplish much of what I intended when Toby the Puppy and I hit the road nearly two weeks ago.
I’ll get more of the “How are you doing?” questions along the way. Those who ask it will get the same answer I’ve been giving. I trust they’ll understand.