If there was one thing my sister Gayla loved, it was VACATION. There were the countless camping trips as children, the one trip to Disney World, one jaunt she took to New York to see me before I moved home, our cruises, and on and on. Most recently, our vivacious Gayla decided she would take a trip to Mexico BY HERSELF! I was wracked with worry from the moment I found out until the minute she arrived back home safe. My sweet little Gayla was going to a foreign country where she didn't speak the language and all scenarios of danger filled my little imagination.
Each day I would check her FaceBook and anxiously await her texts. At one point in the week, she wrote, “Took the bus into the shopping part of town. Spent too many pesos. Stopped at Margaritaville for a margarita and nachos, and then back to the hotel for some time at the beach. I still didn't get to go parasailing. I highly recommend everybody take a vacation by themselves at least once in their lifetime. It has been a wonderful experience so far. I will let you know how the zip lining goes tomorrow.”
When I finally got the text that she was back in DFW, I heaved a huge sigh of relief. Over the next 24 hours, Gayla posted pics and showed us all what a good time she had experienced. To say the least, I was so very impressed with sister’s brave act of adventure. I felt silly to have worried so much. It never even crossed my mind that I should fear her doing an everyday thing like going to eat breakfast at Waffle House and getting a pedicure. Nevertheless, this lazy Saturday luxury would end up being the trip I should have feared.
We have all tried to reason out why she took one road instead of another, questioning our own decisions on March 19. I have blamed myself for so many things that I irrationally think could have changed the outcome. Nothing is going to change this though. There is no rewind or reset button on life. My advice: be like Gayla; adventure out, spend your pesos, eat some nachos, rest on the beach and do something to get your adrenaline going. Life is too short to live it waiting for someday.
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