CONTRIBUTED BY JULIA SAND

For a good portion of my life I have wanted to be the girl who one moment decides to jump on a plane, finding the cheapest ticket out of wherever I am with only a backpack filled of necessities.

On Saturday, Oct. 11, 2014, I fulfilled that long glorified  spontaneous dream.

Let me tell you: it is not all magical. But the important part — the desination– definitely is.

At noon on Saturday I was at the Farmers Market and enjoying the rare sighting of Alpaca at Live at the Levee. By 2 p.m. I was packing my homework backpack with a few crappy shirts and some leggings, just in case I happened to be leaving town. At this point, I was still unsure.

See, my best friend of 10+ years was about to have a baby– in Texas.The problem with having a baby, and a natural birth, is that you never actually know when he will arrive. The struggle! In other words: I had absolutley no plan or timeline on how to make it to Texas. I just knew at some point in the near future, I would be there to meet this baby.

In the drive time from Winona to Wabasha, I had decided I woud leave that night.

It is stressful. My fingernails took the brunt of that stress and are now bitten down mercilessly. For most of the day my mind couldnt settle down, as I frantically searched plane ticket prices. Searched and researched as one moment I found a ticket at $266, and one moment it was gone. The search began again until finally I decided on a $173 ticket. But wait, that is only one way. “I am not cut out for this spontaneity stuff,”  I said to my parents who randomly had come to meet me in Wabasha for the day. At this point, at 4:00 p.m., we were all three sitting in AmericInn hotel (where we were not staying) booking and printing off a ticket for the next plane to Texas at 8:16 p.m.

On our way we went to catch that flight. This is what it feels like! I thought. This is crazy. Because while some folks are probably really good at this, I am 100% a planner-type person. It’s hard for me to call up co-workers and say hey I’m leaving for another state tonight, can you cover my shifts?

Grateful for those who allowed my absence for the next few days, at 8:50 p.m. I sat in a window seat letting out a huge sigh.

Moral of the story is this: whether you are or are not a spontaeous person, be spontaneous. I would love to be the girl who one moment decides to jump on a place, finding the cheapest ticket out of wherever I am with only a backpack filled with necessities, and who does so graciously.

I certiainly didn’t do it graciously. I don’t think I ever will. But it’s worth it. Especially when your Godson, born only a few hours before your arrival, is waiting for you.