We are sure many people will be traveling much further than we have traveled to be home for the holidays, but 1,200 miles from the beach community in Mexico to Merced in a pickup truck was all we bargained for.
The weather when we left was between 75 and 80 degrees. Going to Merced Rotary the day after our arrival it was 30 degrees and we had to chisel the ice off the truck.
Crossing the border, there was a downpour in Indio, which was so heavy the windshield wipers could not remove all the water, so seeing was almost impossible.
Somehow we made it in one piece after driving the last leg at night because the sky was clear and fewer trucks and cars were on the road.
It is all worth it.
There is just nothing that will replace being with one’s family during the holidays.
Our trip was nothing compared to the miles people travel by air, stuck in some airport in the middle of nowhere, trying to get a connector flight.
Air travel, once a joy, has become a nightmare.
A young couple flew down to visit us in Mexico from LA and it should have been a two and half hour flight. The plane arrived in the international airport at Loreto, and without landing, turned around and flew back to LA. The poor couple with their two kids ended up in a hotel in LA at 3 a.m.
Apparently there must have been a problem with the landing gear on the plane. They boarded another plane and arrived a day later, but it cut a day out of their vacation plans.
We would rather drive. There is so much beautiful country which is missed by flying.
Generally we can make the 1,200 mile trip in about the same time by truck then it takes to fly — once one considers having to spend overnight to make a connection between LA and Merced or Fresno.
In the end, it really doesn’t matter how you get there, being with family is what counts. Safety on the road is essential because everyone else is trying to be with their family too.
Having a traffic accident on the way to a holiday home can really put a damper on things.
May this editorial find you well and enjoying the holidays with your loved ones.
And may God bless you.