The Long Way Home

Author: kj
April 12, 2025
Martha's father, William B. Spong Jr., was a United States Senator who represented Virginia from 1966-1973. I never had the honor of meeting the man, but I have enjoyed the stories about him shared with me by his daughter. One of my favorites is that he didn't like to go to a place and then come home again the same way. He liked to go home another way... and if they found hush puppies along the second route, all the better.

I do the majority of the driving in our family, and I try to abide by this ethos. Whether it's a Trader Joes run or a drive home from a destination further away, I do what I can to go home another way. Often the GPS disagrees with this choice. But around here, I of course know where I am enough to choose a different route. If we're away from home, I'll plan ahead and know what route numbers I want to take or I follow the road closest to the lake/mountain/stream before I have to turn back to the main highway. The beauty of the GPS is if you really get yourself turned around, you can always turn it back on.

We've found that when we bump ourselves out of the rut of getting to and from as fast as we can, we are often surprised with what we find along the way. We've found pretty vistas through a meadow, fuzzy coos (Highland cows), one lane bridges, and once, yes, we found hush puppies.

I think this works in relationships too. Sometimes we are so familiar with our own way, that it's hard for us to see that there might be a different way to go. We skip to the conclusion of our argument, rather than take the time to lay out the winding path that got us there. When we open ourselves up to someone else's direction, we might be surprised to find that we can be on the path of life together rather than speeding away from one another. Then together, we can find another way home.

And maybe get some hush puppies.

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