Photograph by Sarah McCosham
Like many folks, I feel like the last few weeks have been…heavy. In addition to current events, I’ve been juggling work, family illnesses, and an all-too-full calendar that’s left me feeling perpetually behind and, if I’m honest, a bit sad.
But life keeps moving, and when it was time to get packed and ready for my one-on-one trip with Harvey, I had to rally—for him and for me. The trip was two days in the Florida Everglades, a bucket-list adventure for my crocodile-loving 10-year-old and this national-parks-loving lady.
Photograph by Sarah McCosham
Everglades National Park is only a one-hour drive from Miami, but it’s quite literally a world away from this massive metropolis. The park encompasses 1.5 million acres of tropical and subtropical habitats with one of the world’s most diverse ecosystems. Within the Everglades, there are five unique habitats, 750 different varieties of native plants, over 300 types of birds, and hundreds of animal species—60 of which are endangered. It’s America’s own Galápagos.
We saw every reptile under the sun, avian species I didn’t know existed, plants and flowers and landscapes spreading across an area so vast it took my breath away. “Go as far as you can—way out yonder where the crawdads sing,” Kya’s mother told her in Where the Crawdads Sing. I felt this on such a deep level; the Everglades was good for my soul.
Photograph by Sarah McCosham
The curiosity and wonder that travel has unlocked for me this year has had a profound effect on me, sparking a passion I didn’t know I had. But you know what else? These travels have enriched my home life, too. I find myself much more present and in the moment; we’ve started regular family game nights and weekend movie marathons. We go on hikes as a family, and, more broadly, we spend more quality time together.
Traveling has also made me realize what a beautiful town Cincinnati is—and friendly, too. Life moves a bit slower here, in a good way. As I write this on a frosty fall morning, I’m witnessing some of the season’s best and brightest foliage falling from the large sycamore tree outside my office window.
One of my favorite parts of my adventures is the drive home from the airport. (I love our airport, by the way; it’s familiar and accessible and there’s something so heartwarming about the pilot welcoming me back home.) We always take I-275 E to I-71 N, and the moment the “cut in the hill” opens up is something I treasure, each and every time. Being greeted by our city’s small-but-striking skyline, the bridges, the mighty Ohio…it’s the best.
Photograph by Sarah McCosham
Returning home from this most recent trip, the world is still largely the same. Work waits, and there’s laundry to do. But I’m not the same, not really. I’m seeing the world with new eyes and a fresh perspective: The world is a big, beautiful place and everything will be OK. Time marches on, nature prevails, and I’m going to do my part to be a kind human and live my one and precious life to the fullest—with Cincinnati, Ohio, as my true north.
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