country roads, take me home

I passed a delightful evening and morning with Sara and her boyfriend in Athens, WV. Nonetheless, after enjoying Pancake Saturday with them, my proximity to Athens, Ohio, sprang to the forefront of my mind. Itching to get on the road, and to find home, I bid a fond farewell to Sara and returned to the interstate.

I-77 becomes the West Virginia Turnpike, and it is a challenging if beautiful drive. If a driver is clever, you can avoid two of the three toll plazas by following specific state routes through rural West Virginia. On my last visit, Sara and Arden patiently delineated for me which routes I ought to take, a detour which doesn't add too much time and is generally worth the four bucks saved. Nevertheless, today I was impatient to get home, so I followed the interstate the entire way.

Saturday afternoon in January is a peaceful time to drive long distances, as I was nearly alone on the road. This left me able to enjoy the sun beaming down on the road before me. The mountains beckoned, seeming to say "Come home! Come home!" I heard bluegrass on the radio, and tears filled my eyes. I crossed through Charleston, one of my favorite state capitals, hidden up in the hills and framed by the rushing Kanawha River. I left exploration of that capitol museum for another adventure - I was too close to home to stop!

The Ohio River runs through Ravenswood, West Virginia, at the Ohio state line. I am in love with this river. Its majesty tells of its history: Significant in trade, westward expansion, and forming borders, I could just stare and stare. It's fitting, too, that on my first adventure of last summer, I played along its shores before exploring West Virginia for the first time.

I steered onto US Highway 33. Highway 33! This highway runs through Athens! Oh, I was getting so close. The day was mostly cloudy, but I still marveled at the rural beauty of the hills along the 37-mile drive. As I neared Athens, I crossed roads that I had driven on before, mentally retracing routes to friends' houses, rejoicing in familiarity. I took the southernmost exit for Athens, purposely driving through town the slow way. In awe, I took it all in.

Athens is still here! Athens exists! It was real!

Three months is both a long and short time to be gone from home. Matters are made all the more complicated when two of those months are spent somewhere once known as home. Although I knew this to not be true, often while in Eugene I found myself wondering if Athens was nothing but a dream. The natural features of the town, the people, the things I have done here, are such an encapsulated experience and so removed from Eugene that it was difficult at times to remember their existence, etched upon my mind as they were. I would hear myself speaking of Athens, enthusiastically extolling its merits, relaying anecdotes, and would almost stop to wonder at where in my memory they came from.

I steered through town, turning onto my street and into my awaiting parking spot. I could barely contain myself. I leaped out of my car and half-ran through the yard, patchy and soft under melting snow. I paused to gaze in wonder at the backyard before scampering up the stairs. I couldn't believe it: there it was! my apartment! looking just like I remembered it! I danced around the apartment, touching everything, turning on each light and opening every last cupboard. Emotion overcame me. Flinging myself onto the floor, I stretched out along the smooth hardwood, breathing in the sense of home. I wept, wracked with sobs indicating joy, relief, and other emotions I cannot even begin to express. It feels so right to be here, but altogether alien. I was gone for three months....but now I am back.

Daily mileage: 185. Total mileage: 5,435.
(more stats to come)