Thursday, May 31, 2007

I Wonder Where I'll Be?

I’m not one to try to predict the future. Although I played MASH with a passion during my tweens, I always had the vague feeling it was a bit of a sticky wicket. A spiral drawn on paper and then the rings counted determines whether or not I’m married to Brad Pitt, driving a red LeBaron convertible? A spiral??

And I always chose the cities arbitrarily: where sounds the most exotic, the most exciting, to a twelve-year-old in Tennessee? New York, London, and Paris always made the list. I had never been to any of these places. (I’ve still never been to Paris.) And it’s not as though I grew up in a booming metropolis or anything. More people went to my high school than to my alma—I like it small-town.

Since we established during last week’s blog that I am, in fact, grown up, and actually have the wisdom (if not the resources) to know where I’d like to live, where would I realistically see myself living?

Right. Here.

I love MSO. Especially since, due to a mind-boggling swift turn of events, the longevity of my address here is under review. The irony of this week’s Wonder is not lost on me. It usually happens that just about the time it looks like I might be leaving a city, I want nothing more than to put down South-Pole-reaching roots. Although friends (and I’ve agreed) have called this my “Great Montana Experiment;” although it takes an unholy amount of money to fly to or from here; although I have no pre-2004 friends here and very little family for whom and by whom time is made to visit here; although there are too many Trustifarians and not enough adequate-paying jobs here; I want to stay here.

But I know it’s not practical. For The Boy’s career or for our hopes of staying close with friends and immediate family. The Boy deserves to live somewhere he can masterfully ply his trade with others who share his level of passion and skill. Despite the magic of technology, it’s not good to go years—years, plural—without seeing and hugging and laughing with and drinking with the ones you love.

So I don’t think I can say where I think I’ll live in the future. The future is dominoes—each decision a family makes is a piece that has a specific slant to its fall that will affect every other piece after it.

2 comments:

Wicked M said...

Lovely! This is my favorite line: "The future is dominoes—each decision a family makes is a piece that has a specific slant to its fall that will affect every other piece after it."

You speak the truth, my sister. How keenly aware I am that you speak the truth in this case.

Anonymous said...

GET BETTER SUPER JANE!

MITZI