I’m two weeks away from heading back to my house in Florida, to live there for the first time in eight years. Over the last year and a half, it has added up to about a year that I’ve been living with the parents in Arkansas. In the grand scheme of things, I really have enjoyed my time here, and although there were some recent rough spots, everything seems to be ending, or at least closing out this chapter, on a good note.

This weekend proved to be particularly interesting. Yesterday was the Trout Festival here in Cotter, Arkansas. I’ve been told it was a bit smaller than pre-Covid years, but it was my first time to get to see it at all. It was one of those yearly events I just couldn’t manage to be here at the right time to attend. But today, on a rare occasion, timing actually turned out to be on my side.

I went kayaking today on the White River. It’s finally starting to warm up enough to go, so thought I would get in a kayak run in The Natural State before I have to leave for The Sunshine State. The White River is a bit more challenging than other rivers I’ve traversed here via kayak. I don’t like to have my phone with me on the water, especially now since my phone has work related functions to it, like two factor authentication that I need to login to my work computer. Now I’ve even more skiddish about bringing my smartphone along, so I didn’t.

I told my stepdad to pick me up at the dock I thought I had reached the last time I made the same run, but I was mistaken. I should’ve taken a better look at the map. On top of that, I forgot to write down phone numbers in case I needed them. These three decisions, or just plain bad choices, almost made my outing today much more difficult than it needed to be.

As I paddled down the river, I was still gung ho and moving right along when I passed up the dock where I told my parents to pick me up. What the hell, I thought, I’ll just find somebody where I do pull up and borrow their phone. Luckily, that part actually happened. But then, my bad choices kicked in. I did find a very nice couple there at the dock, the one where I should’ve told my stepdad to pick me up. They let me use their phone to make a phone call, but I couldn’t remember my Mom’s number when I tried to dial it. After all, who has to remember phone numbers anymore? The genius moves are really kicking in now. Thankfully, oh so thankfully to those kind people, they offered to drive to the dock up river where I was supposed to be. They saw my stepdad, and let him know to pick me up where I actually was, with a kayak full of mud, a soaked hat I almost lost, and my water bottle that has been with me through thick and thin.

The point of me writing all of this is actually not to showcase my stupidity. I seem to have a proclivity for getting lost on hiking trails, and screwing up my kayak fun even when I do know where I’m going. I seem to meet the nicest people that way.

I’ve been a bit apprehensive about going back to Florida, when at the same time it’s the only logical move for me to make at the moment. I haven’t really had my own roof over my head for years now, and I’ve been a nomad roaming all the over the country ever since I left Texas, which has actually been a blast considering everything. I’ve been a nomadic traveler for a good part of my life at this point, and even with moving back into my house, I’m still thinking about where I’ll travel next. In addition, I’m just wondering what sort of house projects await after eight years of renting the place out. It’s a daunting feeling at the moment.

But as I paddled full force today with wind not exactly in my favor, and possible rain clouds overhead, it made me realize that sometimes, a lot of times, in life you just have to go full speed ahead and trust that you’ll make it to the other side. Times are uncertain, like they always are, and although I made my mistakes, I still made it through. I have to remember what I have been through in recent years, and how I’ve managed to make a wrong place situation a right time situation.