Embrace Your Destiny: The Rewards of Hard Work

This is younger sister Penni on the right. We were doing a selfie at one of the many adventures she has invited me to over the years. The neat thing about Penni's trips, is that she has meetings in really nice places with great people and fun things to do. I think she must pave the way for me with attendees. Everybody embraces me like an old friend and makes sure I feel included in the spouse activities. 


I am so proud of Penni. From all I've witnessed, Penni is highly respected and one of the ring leaders in her field of Customer Service. She is the Chief Customer Officer of Eversource Energy in Boston. She has to travels a lot with her job having to leave her family most of the time. There are only a couple of organizations that have trips where spouses are included. These are the ones I get invited to attend when her husband Nick needs to be home with their very active sons.

I have been preparing for a trip this week to La Jolla. This is a group that plans a huge Customer Service Week event involving thousands of people. The group I'll be part of however is the planning board. Its is small and intimate. It's been a number of years since I have been to this meeting but I remember some of the people Penni sent who are attending. While Penni will be in meetings during the three day meeting, I'll get to play with the other guests who are usually spouses. I'll try to go to the Hot Yoga Studio if possible. There will also be lots of fun things the spouses will find to do. We will be staying at the Grande Colonial which is a boutique hotel on the beach. 

I'm writing about this adventure because while it is exciting for me to anticipate, there is also a bit of anxiety. During my pre-retirement years, this would have been just another nice trip with Penni. Now, I put more thought into many things. Between Penni and hubby Donnie, the trip plans are just about foolproof. I like that because stress is not something I like to take on in strange environs.  Direct flight, check! Easy meet up with Penni at Baggage Claim in San Diego, check! I'll study my list of people on the way in order to be conversant with at least the ones I remember. For the others, Penni has provided some information for starters. My Toastmasters training has prepared me to be more confident speaking in both formal and informal situations. I'll be able to practice much of the impromptu speaking we use at each Toastmasters meeting.

Feeling self confident is something I value. Having the body awareness and confidence to navigate by walking in most places is huge. That's my motivation for strength training at Gold's Gym and lessons with my trainer Lacey, daily hot yoga sessions at Hot Yoga Asheville, and even piano lessons with Annette. I use to be somewhat graceful but that all vanished about 20 years ago. Now, I'm challenging the disease and feeling good about progress I've made. The proof will be in how well I manage next week with new places, new friends, and new experiences. It's empowering. Every time I return from a trip with Penni, I thank Nick and Donnie and of course Penni for an amazing opportunity. Tune in for a report when I return.

At the Disney Museum 

Free time in San Francisco

Friend Laura from Evansville, IN

A group activity in Portland