Downshift Musings

May 13th was my first official Monday as a retired person, so I kicked it off by joining a hiking group that runs organized hikes around Austin every Monday and Friday mornings. My friend Mary Coppinger had told me about this group back in 2021 so I got her to hook me up with the organizer in time to join right away. You can’t really see since I’m way in the back but I also had my full Camino backpack on, along with my new shoes to give all of the gear a little shake down. (More on that later.)

I made the decision back in February that it was time to leave the workforce. After 23 straight years in the software engineering field I’m ready to drop out and prepare for what is coming next… Because what is coming next is big! We lost my mom last month right before her 84th birthday. Then we very unexpectedly lost my dad last Thursday to pneumonia and other complications. But most critically, my youngest sister Becky has been battling stage 4 cancer for almost 3 years, and she is out of options for effective treatments. When she passes I will become guardian to my niece Hope (13), and my nephew Wyatt (11). Their father died when they were babies. I anticipate spending a lot of time in Dillsburg, PA over the next few months assisting Becky and the kids as much as I can. And then I will devote all of my energies to getting them settled here with us and with all of the love and help they need. Starting again with teenagers! (For reference, Genevieve is now 27 and Tristan is 25.)

Any way I will be busy in retirement, even without two new children. I am currently involved in, or on the board of, 3 non-profits. I have strength-training and pilates workouts, piano lessons, bell choir practices, prayer and service. I let go the yard guy and said good-bye yesterday to my faithful house cleaner. I got a mountain bike for my birthday and I am really enjoying riding the Shoal Creek Hike and Bike trail. And of course walking and both landscape and vegetable gardening.

Speaking of gardening, I had a bumper crop of volunteer parsley pop out in the herb garden and else where in the front yard. The plants are starting to bolt with the warmer weather so I picked a bunch and I made a chimichurri marinade and sauce for steak tonight. I’ll make some roasted potatoes and a salad too.

My garden plot at Sunshine Community Gardens is starting to produce now. We’ve got the early tomatoes coming in, peppers and soon some zucchini. I’ve found out that the new cat keeps eating some of the tomatoes even though that can’t be good for her.

Just a few other photos, in honor of Mother’s Day that just passed.

The final update is a piece of news that will be really obvious in a few days. On Thursday we are off to Portugal and Spain to finish our pilgrimage from last year. Picking up in Porto, we will walk out to the coast and up the boardwalks for about a day before heading back inland to the Portuguese Central route. In Pontevedra we detour to the Spiritual Variant and after Santiago we will continue to Cape Finisterra and Muxia. We should end up walking 19 days. I am really looking forward to this time to deal with the loss and changes that have been and will occur. I am hoping that the Caminho Português north out of Porto has more comradery and friendship. We will stay in quite a few more public hostels this time and I have broken up the really long days to be something reasonable.