Life on Mars

It really doesn't seem so far back to a wonderful season when we had a house at the beach, an excellent location for the summer and preschool breaks. The setting was everything one could ever desire in some of the best years of life, and it came complete with the most fascinating neighbor. While I stayed overwhelmed by sippy cups, naps, and dragging a wagon carrying three-year-old Annabelle and five-year-old William to the beach, the woman next door glided through what appeared--to me, at that moment--an alternative lifestyle. 

Single and attractive Cathy owned the home next door and, in Delta parlance, we would say she worked 5 on/2 off as a busy publishing executive. She entertained, she traveled, and she had an ATL boyfriend who dropped down on the weekend. While I was perpetually bedraggled on the daily little-child hamster wheel, a stylish and well-heeled Cathy breezed in and out. I never worked out her age because she was older than I and, at the time, all those numbers were nebulous to me anyhow. She had a career and a social life, and she always looked terrific. It was like a Martian lived beside us. 

Just like the beach house, the naps, the wagon, and, sadly, the sippy cups went away. Time flew by, and the little three-year-old and the five-year-old achieved enough birthdays to make them semi-adults, now living it up away in college. And, just the other day, I had a miniature Damascus Road moment, realizing I can perhaps have a go at the Cathy lifestyle. It was a very startling thought. 

In order to try for gliding in my life, I had to go back 22+ years to consider what exactly I did with my pre-children self. Committed to the Delta jets three days a week meant I went a lot of places--with old friends and new--served up on a silver platter known as the jumpseat. Every work day delivered all sorts of people in vast and far-flung locales with effortless social interaction included in the deal, all down to show up and sign in. 

And in the world of children there was little opportunity to ever be lonely or bored. All along the way, we were in countless beneficial situations meeting new friends—both little and grown--through school, church, and sports. William and Annabelle provided a ticket into worlds filled with fantastic people, and these experiences continue to pay dividends to this very day. Again, it all unfolded by simply walking out the door. 

So now I have to sort out how to drag these two best parts of the past up here into the future. Somewhere along the way, social media was crowned king and can easily fool me with the illusion of interacting with others brought by this way of signing in. I don't have to get dressed up (at all), and I can quasi-socialize to my heart's content from my sofa. 

The crazy thing about this modern life is if I can't be bothered to get up and go places, the world available 24/7 online has no problem coming to me. A reasonable facsimile of just about anything one can imagine easily appears on command. Recipes are served up, shopping is a breeze, help and advice (about anything) are just a google and, if I don't feel like getting up and out for church, it can appear right in my lap. 

However, it recently dawned on me that real live fellowship and shared experiences with others have always been the finest part of life. And, once upon a time, it was second nature to go about making them happen because it was just how things worked. Seeing friends' daily life photos online from occasions both big and small now makes no one seem terribly far away. But, then again, they're not here on my sofa sharing life and time, either. 

Dropping by to visit friends in their homes for no special reason was once a particularly sweet and regular part of life, and I always looked forward to the ritual debrief phone call when friends returned from trips. Receiving notes, cards and invitations in the US Mail were ever-pleasant surprises. All of these occurred back in that dark age when communicating with each another meant one had to do some work. It was a different world. 

In 2018, It's exciting to see what's possible out there--the 5 on/2 off work I once believed to be other-worldly is quite interesting and, surprisingly, there are still countless opportunities presented every day that are new and exciting. While the omnipresence of everyone and everything courtesy of the virtual world is certainly beneficial, the finest arrangement of my life today should bring with it the best parts of the old school, too. 

With great curiosity, I always watched our neighbor Cathy coming and going in what appeared to me a full and enviable life. And courtesy of the children William and Annabelle, great people came my way in engaging settings. The significant lesson from all of these past moments is the walking out the door part. The richness in life that has been around forever is attainable, starting with showing up somewhere else amongst others. And it all begins with effort.