The Yearly Pilgrimage

By Doug

It's vacation time again. Time for us to pack our bags and board a plane, 'cause were heading back to our ancestral homeland: Upstate New York.

It works out pretty well for us, since both my family, Stacey's family, and our respective friends live in the same (general) area. So, we can easily split the time, and we get to see everyone.

But man is it becoming expensive to go back.

Chalk it up to sagging economy, rising gas prices, other home projects that need time and/or money (like our roof that needs to be replaced), or other things that I'm probably forgetting about. It's getting more and more difficult to fly back East. I figure at some point, we're going to have to just skip a summer, stay home, and replace the gutters (like we've been meaning to for the past few years).

Except, I don't know if that "some point" will ever come. Nor do I really want it to.

Yeah, for Stacey and me, it's always nice to go back and see our family and friends (and take advantage of our once-a-year free babysitting service). But, that's not really the driving force of our yearly pilgrimages. What is really important is that Brady gets to have time with her grandparents, aunts, uncles, and cousins.

Family had always been important in our lives growing up. In light of some true horror stories out there, it makes having the familial relationships we have that much more important and treasured. We want Brady go have that closeness as well. It's just that it's a bit tough to do that from 2,500 miles away. Oh sure, we take full advantage of 21st century cyber-tools, like Skype and Facebook to be better connected to our family back in New York. But, it's not quite the same as being there.

We want Brady to be able to be with her cousins, not think of them in the abstract. We want her to know and be with her grandparents (not to mention, they'd like to see her, too). Most importantly, we want her to know and feel that her family is not just the three of us; that there is a large extended family that is there for her too, should she ever need them as she grows older.

Truth be told, the trip back is good for us as well. We need the combination mental recharge/emotional reassurance that we get from our families. It helps us through the other eleven months of the year when we are pretty much on our own. It's certainly nice to have it when you have the chance.

So, does the house need work? Most definitely. Will it be tough to afford the trip back if prices continue as they have been. Absolutely.

But, will we make it work in order for the three of us to make it back for that one-month-a-year visit home?

Like you really have to ask.