I started my week at Lake Honnedaga, a tiny piece of heaven in the Adirondack Mountains. It's 40 minutes from the closest town and the only way to get around is by boat or walking. As soon as I got out of the car and walked down to the docks, the sound of silence almost overwhelmed me. No rustling or waves, just complete quiet.
Then all of the childhood memories came back from my summers growing up here. Playing on the sandy beaches, walks along the lake trail stopping in to visit the camps we passed by, my aunt Jeannie teaching me how to waterski, the boy I had a crush on from age 6-18 (who always liked my sister better), my friend Sarah's dad driving the boat around in circles as we flew up off the inner tube with total joy, eating s'mores in leantos, painting fungi with my grandfather, the nights we spent drinking beer and getting into trouble (since you can hear a pin drop half a mile away nothing was much of a secret from our parents), the summer I spent working there when I was 16, Honnedaga weekend talent shows and the Bacon Brothers shows, and hiking out in the middle of the night to campsites 3 miles away just to scare the shit out of your friends. Every year we spent a week in August at Honnedaga, sharing a cabin with my aunt, cousins and grandparents. It's a place where many of the families (including mine) have been journeying there for generations. It's also quite a gossipy place, there is not much to do other than hiking, water-sports and sitting on the docks chatting with whoever is around. There is still no phone reception and the lodge is the only place you can check the internet. It's comforting that after 7 years of being away, nothing has really changed. There were a few new faces, but otherwise it's exactly the same as I remembered.
After leaving Honnedaga, my mom and I drove along Route 12 through green farms, barns, antique shops and victorian towns. The green rolling hills of upstate New York. I thought about the six hour drive as a child and the small toys my mom gave us every hour to keep us occupied and the parks where she would let us out to run around.
Back in Pennsylvania, my soul sister and cousin Tracy was on her way back from NY to work on her new restaurant in Philadelphia. So I was lucky enough to get to catch her for a few hours as we exchanged stories, pictures and talked about east coast vs the west. Then I rushed home to meet my friend Webb who was traveling from a conference in Geneva to her new PhD home at Penn State. She made the unbelievable effort of taking a detour from her already 5 hour drive to come see me and bring me wonderful baby gifts. It was a perfect day getting to see two old friends!
The next morning I took an early flight to Phoenix and drove to Sedona for my best friend's wedding. Sadly, it rained more than it is ever supposed to in the high desert, but it was still wonderful to be there among the mountains and red rocks. We attempted a hike of Bear Mountain only to be surrounded by huge dark clouds on all side and get completely drenched on our scramble down the steep rocks. The thing I love so much about small weddings is that you really get to know the other people, and because there were so many food and outdoor activities together, I had a chance to spend time with some really cool people. One of my new friends had recently moved from DC to Palm Springs, CA and was talking about how happy she is not be the weird one anymore, since in Palm Springs it's an anything goes kind of place. I guess I realized I had made the reverse commute. Going from SF where everyone waves their freak flag without abandon and there so much acceptance in general to Stockholm where it feels so stifling and conformist. I am definitely the weird one who likes cleanses and yoga. I guess I haven't found the right people yet either.
Before leaving Sedona I saw Lauren and her longtime love get married in one of the most spectacular settings under a huge blue sky and the rocks towing above them. Simple and beautiful.
Afterwards, I squeezed in a short hike with panoramas of the whole valley. And took in the sensory mixture of the cacti and red earth together with the sweet smells of rosemary, juniper and sage. I also gave my first wedding toast and managed to remember most of my speech. Woohoo! Sadly, I had to leave the reception early to begin the long trip back to Sweden.
The thing I miss the most living here in Sweden, other than the obvious favorite people and places, and the variety of available foods, is the people to people interaction. When walking on the trails in Sedona people smile and acknowledge you, when buying a snack at the Chicago airport the clerk asked me when I started showing and shared with me that she was 2 months pregnant. It's these random and lovely interactions that make living in a city bearable. It's feels so much less isolating when the people around treat you like you actually exist. I think the Swedes, much like I found the people who live in London, are afraid of meeting new people and reaching out to someone they don't know. And now, I just realized, I have stopped even trying when I'm here. Which is even more depressing.
