In Flight

We just passed Lake Tahoe, then the Eastern Sierra heading for the Rocky Mountains on our way to New York. We all made it. Only a couple of parents cried, and none of the kids! Hasmig rearranged our seats with a friendly couple who was happy to escape our pack, so we're all sitting together. Gemma ended up sitting next to a very nice woman who held her hand during take-off, and she was fine. Better than fine, she looked ecstatic. Half of Team Kyle was asleep before the plane took off. Hasmig and I both got scolded for not turning off our phones when we were supposed to. Nick started in on his big-as-the-tray-table sandwich right away, Ben can hear nothing besides his iPod. Siena is in fetal position against the bulkhead with her head wrapped in a jacket. We're good.

And guess who slept through his alarm and nearly missed the trip?? I was almost finished packing, making the bed for the house sitter, downloading old photos and charging my camera, paying my property taxes, shooting Max a last minute email, returning a dozen well-wishing texts, posting to the blog, etc., when Irma and Amri showed up at the front door to send me off. As hard as it is for me not to be with Persis, Niko, Irma and Amri on the day of the anniversary of the accident, it still feels right to be on the plane heading to the Middle East. We had a sweet little visit, and talked about our boys who didn't bring guns to Berkeley High, didn't get in fights, had no enemies, never got in any serious trouble, spent most of their time together laughing, but lost the roll of the dice. Amri is forever annoyed with me that I don't wear pajamas or sweats around my own house, and can't believe that I'm so uptight that I am still in my daytime pants and shirt late in the evening. She's taken me on as a project, trying to teach me how to relax. She's not a very good teacher, though, and relies mostly on lecture and direct instruction. By the time Irma hugged me goodnight, it was 2:30am. Maya and I climbed into Kyle's bed, the first time I've slept there since March 31. I set my alarm for 4:30am. The next thing I remember was Leib knocking on the front door and the house phone ringing. It was 5:30am. I made it out of the house in 15 minutes, but we were still the last of the group to arrive at the airport.

So, once again, this time in a very tangible way, I almost didn't make it. And once again, it was the Sutcher/Barber Family and Hasmig who grabbed me and willed me through. Steve even had coffee waiting for me in the car.

Parents, if you're reading this, don't worry. I promise from here on out, I'll get my shit together and act like a grown up!