Oklahoma

Some of my family members reside in Oklahoma, which has prompted a few visits there over the past couple of years. My mom and I have visited and stayed with my aunt, which affords us the opportunity to spend time with a couple of my cousins, their kids, and one of their grandbabies.

One of my cousins out there is particularly special to me. We are six months apart and grew up more like sisters until junior high when they left California. We can go a year without talking, then get together and it’s like we’re giddy girls again, as though no time has passed.

Sure, our conversations have changed from wild daydreams, Barbies, and things like that to the aches and pains of hitting forty, motherhood, family life, work, relationships, and so on. But it always feels right.

Every time we go, we get to play with the babies. They range from one to six now. We always try to squeeze in some kind of a short road trip to explore and see where the adventure takes us.

Last year I got to chauffeur my mom and aunt while everyone else was working. Like, literally. They sat in the back together and directed me like I was their personal limo driver.

They wanted to take old route 66 through the state. I don’t even remember our actual destination, but it was definitely an adventure since the signs and roads are in extremely poor conditions in parts, there was road construction in others, and the overall shenanigans of listening to these two sixty-somethings giggle like school girls.

Their back and forth, banter, stories, and giggles are always a treat. I love watching them together because you can see and feel their love for one another. Years melt off of both of them when they’re together.

That day included finding quite a few cool little spots and Route 66 museums. We ended up coming back to the same intersection in the same small town a few times. I have no idea how that happened (I was following their directions).

That’s when they mentioned a two-week road trip they wanted to plan for the two of them. My cousin and I decided we couldn’t let them go alone because who knows where they’d end up. And knowing them, they might lose a phone or not charge it and we’d lose out mothers to Route 66.

This year, we rented a larger vehicle to go on an old ghost town tour of some towns near where they live. It was my aunt, my mom, me (chauffeur again), my cousin, her 22-year-old, and the boys (her 4-year-old son and 1-year-old grandson). We knew it would be an adventure even if we drove one town over with our crew.

The “ghost town tour” as it was dubbed on some site my aunt found was definitely not what we thought it would be. It was more like older, small towns that still had an old building or two standing.

In one of those little towns, they also boasted a historic landmark of some famous outlaw shootout with the sheriff. The main buildings were all still standing. There was a general store, barn, hotel, and saloon.

I took a few pictures of the buildings, then of my mom and aunt in front of the hotel. My mom suggested that I try to take a selfie (or usie to be more accurate) with them, my cousin, and me. I thought I could get more of the buildings in the background if I sat on the old horse post and angled my camera with them behind me.

That might have worked out great. Except the wood is over a hundred years old and the post snapped. Apparently it wasn’t the first time, because it was reinforced with an old, rusty, metal stake.

I fell backwards and landed safely on my behind. However, I sat there in shock for a couple of minutes. I was in a sticky situation. There was a three foot rusted out, sharp, metal stake between my legs. Less than inch from my lady parts and just as close to both of my thighs.

My cousin and my mom helped me up. We were able to put the old post back the way we found it and I took the photo with all of us standing up, not touching any of the old petrified wood.

Even months later, I realize how close I came to an incredibly unpleasant situation that day. Can you imagine impaling yourself on a piece of metal in front of your mom and other family members? It would have probably made that show 1,001 Ways to Die, but I’d rather do some more living first.

At any rate, I miss them and am looking forward to seeing them again. In the meantime, I have a couple of ideas for other trips to visit some other family members. Have you been traveling lately? Do you plan to?