strike that

indebted

Here I am again at four in the morning, because Julie had one of those flights that makes you hate the world when your alarm goes off after three hours of sleeping, when your stomach turns and everything feels cold and flat. A little good music on the car stereo, though, and I’m awake as day, dancing a little, glad for this slice of the rarely seen.

Each person may or may not have some big purpose in life but everyone has little purposes for sure, the things they do so reliably and so naturally that the importance of them is overlooked. But in the end these million little purposes are the scaffolding of all the obvious stuff. In the end our million little purposes hold us all up. My friend Lauren sends birthday presents – careful, perfect birthday presents – to every one of her nieces and nephews, and that is no small number of packages. My friend Kira will tell you that you are making the right decision when you most need to hear it, will so convince you that you won’t remember any doubt. My friend Dave will read you to sleep.

And one of my little purposes is airports. I will never not ever hesitate about a trip to the airport. I will pick you up or drop you off at any hour and it will not be a reluctant, obligatory sort of ride – I will not think, even once, even quietly, that I wish I didn’t have to do it. It is huge to me, to be delivered to the beginning of a trip, because trips are usually bigger than they seem. And it is huger still to land and know someone is waiting. I am grateful every time to repay the universe with airport karma. I am grateful it is so easy to do something so important.

posted by tortaluga @ 4:48 AM