Chicago - A Mother Journey

"Our purpose here is to wake up, to begin to remember the powerful and loving beings we really are . . . " Shakti Gawain

The building behind the "L" train tracks is where I stayed in the HI-Chicago - youth/family hostel. I can recommend it as an inexpensive place to stay in a safe area right downtown close to Lake Michigan, and many other attractions. I started to post a straightened version of this photo. But even though it's askew, I like this one better.

It's was an interesting time to start at the hostel as there was a marathon on the weekend following my stay. So the hostel was packed, even more than normal, with athletes from around the globe. I do love being surrounded by a litany of different languages.

I spoke to a woman who used to live in Chicago, and then moved to what she referred to as the deep, deep south. She had come back "home" for a visit. She inquired as to why I had come. When I told her it because my mother had been born there, she responded with "ah, you're on a mother journey." Our conversation ended abruptly as she needed to go out. I never saw her again. I felt like she had been placed in my path to make me aware or affirm that I was in the right place. After riding the "L", and wandering around town, I felt I had a better sense of my mother. The city has a different pace, rhythm, feel than where I grew up in southern California. I enjoyed Chicago, riding the "L", and hope to visit again someday as there was a lot more to experience there.

"We search on our journeys, for a self to be, for other selves to love, for work to do . . ." Frederick Buechner