For those of us who listened and followed guidelines, emerging from the restrictions of the COVID Pandemic can be a challenge. I traveled recently for the first time in over two years. It felt like it had been a lot longer than that. It was wonderful to be with my daughter on one trip and with extended family (cousins and their families) on another trip. So much fun and plenty of laughter. Yes, fun and laughter abounding. It was worth learning all over again how to pack well, navigate airports, and be shoulder-to-shoulder with the stranger in the next seat. I wore a mask on flights. The airports I was in had arranged some of the gate seating to allow for distancing. It was nice to have that choice and a little tiresome to have to think about it. So many little choices that did not exist in the past. Wearisome.

So, I remembered something I wrote down years ago:

When all else fails, just breathe.

 Slow deep breaths as I sat in an unscheduled gate area. I also strolled around...