Notes Along the Way - Mary Montague Sikes: March 2022

Thursday, March 24, 2022

Lost Along the Way

"TWA" ©MaryMontagueSikes

Somehow, this year, I have become lost along the way in my life and I haven't posted on my blog. The words have not come. I have not been inspired to share my thoughts, although there are many.

In the past, we have been devoted travelers. All my adult life, I have traveled and have often lived looking forward to the next travel adventure. In the past several decades, we usually have had at least four trips a year. The Covid-19 pandemic changed all of that.

Little did we know in early March 2020, when we returned from our annual baseball spring training trip to Jupiter, Florida, that we would not get on an airplane again for another two years.

When we boarded our flight on February 28, 2022, it felt strange to walk up the Jetway. Wearing our masks on two flights seemed strange as well, but we did it. On one of our flights when we landed in Charlotte, North Carolina, I looked out the window and thought we might have gone back in time because a plane was parked at one of the gates with TWA on its tail. That was our favorite airline until it disappeared years ago!

Last October, I spent many hours on the phone and on the computer purchasing and printing tickets for seven St. Louis Cardinals baseball games and for parking for each one. As we traveled, we were excited and hopeful for seeing all of them. But then the lockout continued, and with each passing day, hope dwindled. However, we went to Roger Dean Stadium most days for two weeks.

We watched John Mozeliak, president of baseball operations for the Cardinals, as he watched the minor leaguers practice. I saw him get the call probably telling him the major league lockout was over. We were excited to see Jordan Walker, a promising young prospect, hit. We watched other prospects, like Luken Baker and Nolan Gorman, practice. We loved being on the back fields again, being let in without having to get checked as we were in 2020. It was refreshing and exciting.

My husband chatted with players in the outfield and was tossed a practice ball while waiting by our rental car. Our daughter, Allison, took photos on each of the four fenced fields where the minor league practiced each day. Both of them prefer the back fields to the actual spring training games.

It was not until our final day in Jupiter that the major league players returned. We are home now and watching the games at Roger Dean Stadium from the convenience and comfort of our own TV room.

Perhaps I am no longer lost.