Change

I was driving to work today. Like I had done a thousand times during my years in Redmond. An apple in hand, listening to the radio, mind on autopilot – the point where you know the road so well that you don’t even think about it. A fire truck broke the routine for a bit and just as I was pressing the accelerator to settle back into the comfortable monotony I said- I love this. I said it out aloud to no one in the car. Not doing this for two months and realizing that I am not going to do this for a long long time made it so real. I realized that this comfortable taken for granted drive on the road is going to take a long time to attain in another place Yes, I love driving on the ramp up to 520. I love seeing some random poppies that someone planted along the way. Love not hitting the ramp’s red light. Even the slow shuffle before I get off West lake Sammamish parkway provides moments of entertainment as people try to get 10 seconds back changing lanes. West Lake is beautiful, trees that change color and cars that flash their lights at you if a police car is parked ahead. Every so often as I drive up the last steep road to work I wonder what it would take to bike up this. I did this for way too many years and it took going away to make me realize that I love this.

In a year’s time there will be a note about me asking my driver to change the CD on as we pass “Annaji Biryani House” and I know the road traffic will suddenly get lighter, I will be driven faster, I will no longer laugh as I see the menus painted on doors of shanty restaurants proclaiming they have the “sweatest juicys”. I will know exactly what veggies will be on sale on the carts and most likely the right price for them. I will no longer get excited seeing the fruits I missed all the years I was in Redmond. I will get familiar with that too and stop noticing it and smiling or shaking my head as much as I do. At that point I hope we will be brave enough to make another change so I realize that I love it.