Travel discomfort, freezing a little, and togetherness - the Friday poem roundup

What I wrote Wed, 4/23 to Fri, 4/25

Happy Friday, crazy people. Spring seems to have decided to drag itself out of bed, grumbling and bleary-eyed. Hopefully, it’ll stick around before summer muscles its way in and sets up shop. In the meantime, three more poems for you.

Here we go.

4/23/25
I’ve never been 
Completely comfortable 
   with travel.
Those college kids 
Chomping at the bit 
To study abroad?
   Not it.
Those weary young professionals 
Desperate to get away 
For the weekend?
   I’m good.
So as we hustle and pack and schlep
In prep
For a family vaca that I know 
   will be wonderful 
I wonder why
Part of me would be 
Happy
   to stay home.

I’ve always been something of a homebody, taking after my mom. She has always been most content at home with a good book. My dad couldn’t be cooped up in a chair for more than a few minutes, let alone our little New Hampshire town. His heart was always climbing a mountain, kayaking on a lake, or running on a beach. But that never really rubbed off on me. But, we have become something of a traveling clan. So, I do my best to keep up. :)

4/24/25
Sometimes you have to 
   freeze a little.
When your little one,
   who runs hot,
Is all zipped up 
In her travel bed,
   which keeps heat in,
You have to 
Keep the room at 68
   and freeze a little.
That’s one way
   we’re different.
I, in a moment of weakness,
Would sneak the thermostat 
   up a degree or two.
And you, luv,
   would not.

Not proud to admit it, but I have been known to tick the hotel thermostat up a notch once the wife and little one are asleep, just to lessen my—let’s face it—comparatively mild discomfort.

4/25/25
Togetherness
Is a squishy thing.
Sitting together 
On a hotel bed,
Devouring individual 
   vegan frozen microwaved dinners
While taking care 
   of the business of travel.
Texting pet sitters,
Letting loved ones know 
   we’ve arrived,
Decompressing with 
   a game on the phone.
Togetherness 
Doing separate stuff 
That helps us all stay together.
(But she lets me
   feed the fish in the phone game.)

Whether on the road or at home, our evenings typically involve a lot of being together but doing separate stuff. She pays bills, orders things we need, and plans our future while sitting on the couch, I move laundry along, prep food, and scrub dishes. After hours is where the business of being our family gets done and it almost always requires us to divide and conquer.

If you’ve made it this far, you clearly want more of this. So, go ahead and indulge and pick up a copy of Every Day, Luv.

See you next week! :)