My happy place

Most of us have a happy place; some of us have more than one. A happy place can be a spot we went on vacation to, a house from our childhood (ours or another), a city we love, etc. For me, I have two happy places.

The first is “the cabin” as my family affectionately calls our country home. My parents bought it 45 years ago. It is located on a lake in MA. No matter when I go there, I feel my stress drop and my mood relax. When I was in HS, I would tell my parents to hold the weekend before semester final exams to head up and study in the peach and quiet. I have fond memories of celebrating birthdays, thanksgiving, barbecues, etc.

My second happy place is Memphis, TN. It is the birthplace of my mother and where she was raised. She left at 18 to attend college in the northeast and never went back., except to visit. My sister and I visited every year until I was 17 at which point both of my grandparents had passed. I have fond memories of my grandmother taking me to the Dixon Gallery (an art museum), eating fried chicken, swimming with my cousins in my great-aunt Hallie’s pool, and getting my portrait taken at Sears and then by my grandfather, an amateur photographer. I’m not sure which portraits are worse— Sears or my grandfathers; they’re all atrocious.

A little over two years ago, Sylvie and I visited Memphis with my mom. My mother gave us the Bobye Goodman childhood tour of homes, schools, and other noteworthy places which was awesome. We had a cousins’ lunch of my mother’s generation and Sylvie learned about the mischief my mother caused as a child.

If you’re like me and can still return to your happy place or places, then I recommend you do so with regularity. Right now as I write this I am at “the cabin.” soaking up nature, walking around the lake, and playing Gin with my daughter. This truly is my happy place!