Wanderlust

 It's been a while since I've visited. But Europe calls to me constantly. I'm reworking a novel right now about a schoolteacher in France. She's helping to herd a group of teenagers on a school trip. Sound familiar?

Of course it does. I tend to write what I know, even in fiction. But even those arduous trips with teens are precious to me. Because I love Europe. I've never been to a country in Europe I didn't fall in love with. These pictures are from Portugal where my daughter lived for a few years.

And I have a long list of places still to go there. I've never been to Bath, Brussels or Rome. And they're all way at the top of my bucket list.

This year has had some fine moments but it hasn't been the greatest in a lot of ways. The constant desire to travel has been one of the hardest things to deal with.

And that's because it's not just Europe that is calling to me. One of the most frustrating things this year has been knowing that some fabulous places (I've never been) are within driving distance of here. Niagara Falls, Boston, Cape May,... I could go on and on. And now the weather is cooling off. It won't be long before any trips to those places become problematic.

But I can still be a tourist right here in Northeast PA. Because having the weather cool off in August is novel. And having everything so green in August is also novel. And my fascination with fall color still hasn't worn off and probably never will.

So we'll stay close to home. We have a couple of grandson baptisms this year that will make traveling a pleasure. They just won't be in Europe.