MY IMMOBILITY

OR

NONADVENTURES IN AGING

This is the realization I realized this morning. Between the ages of 16 and 27 I had visited the following places: pretty much every major area in texas, oklahoma city, tulsa, chicago, atlanta, dowagiac michigan, orlando, santa fe, alberquerque, most of colorado, sedona arizona, the grand canyon, south dakota, iowa, washington d.c. (about half a dozen times,) helsinki finland, the entire country of estonia twice (including the islands of saarema and hiiuma,) riga latvia, and mexico. and two days in jfk airport, and a drive across the city.

Draw a line from waco to dallas going up i-35. Then draw a line from Dallas to Marshall going east on i-20. Now, draw a line from Marshall back to waco going southwest on highway 31. Those lines all form a triangle. Within the past two years, this body has not gone outside of that triangle.

Two years ago I would have been terrified if you had told me this would happen. I would fear not being legitimate. I would fear being labled as one of those people who has never been outside of Texas. I would have feared being labeled poor (which I am.)

But now I am calmly uninterested in what my lack of mobility says about me to the rest of the people in my generation.