My Traveling Partner

People have commented that I am so brave to venture out into another country on my own. They wonder how I do it being so far away from friends and family. The answer is simple. My Mom.

Three years ago today I lost my mom to lung cancer. She was my world - my soul sister, my best friend. In trying to cope with her loss, searching for the meaning of life and the courage to move on, I remembered her words to me as she was battling cancer...."Maybe now this is your time to move to another state or another country." Almost two years later, I dug deep and found the courage to pack up my life and move to London.

My mom had always known that I loved to travel and experience new and different things. She would take every chance to remind me to be financially responsible saying "Oh, you've bought too many clothes. Oh, you should save your money." Never once did she ever question my spending habits when it came to traveling. I remember when I was as young as 9 or 10, I belonged to a church that ran a summer camp in Green Bay, Wisconsin. As a single mother, she did everything in her power to make sure I could attend camp. When I was there, she'd write me letters, send care packages, and accept my collect calls, phoning her to tell her I missed her and was homesick.

So as I am here in London, 4000 miles away from home, I feel my mom with me. The coolest dream I've had is that my mom logs onto Facebook and checks out the photos of my travels.

I often wonder what she would like and dislike about London. My mom would absolutely love the mild weather. Not too hot and not too cold. My mom liked when it rained and the smell of the air that followed before a good rain. She would absolutely love how everyone smokes here. My mom smoked for 35 years. I think she would like the open markets like Colombia Flower Market, Borough Market and Spitalfields. We always loved to go shopping together whether it was browsing or to do some serious shopping.

She probably wouldn't like the transit system and the crowds. She loved having a car and running her errands fairly easy. She wouldn't really like the everyday food here but would like the occasional good restaurant. She would probably go crazy for not having a Dunkin' Donuts on every corner for her convenience.

As I travel Europe, I have these "ah-ha" moments. Last week it was as simple as lounging in the park with Stanley and being a peace. In Barcelona, it was the beauty of being by the sea. It's these breath taking moments when I think wow, I'm really here. I'm really experiencing this and not once do I feel alone because in a spiritual way I know my mom is with me. I know she would love just being with me and that we would enjoy whatever journey we were on. Always and Forever.