Friends and acquaintances of mine from other places sometimes say to me, “How can you live in a place like Sanpete? It’s in the middle of nowhere. There’s nothing there.”

My response is, “Those criticisms you’re making are actually very good reasons to live in Sanpete. (even though they’re not accurate). And besides that, I’ve found that you can get to anywhere in the entire world from right here in Sanpete County, Utah.”

I’ve been getting “itchy feet” lately. I feel like I need to take a trip somewhere for a few days. It’s not that I’m sick of Sanpete. Maybe it’s just that I have everyone’s wardrobe memorized and I’d like to see different people wearing different clothing. I don’t know.

The pandemic has put a kibosh on international travel. There are so many challenges and obstacles to overcome to successfully fly and get into other countries it seems. But it is possible.

I know a couple of people who have just returned from vacations. One little group spent a week in a resort in the Caribbean and had a good time.

Some others just got back from a cruise which included Italy and Greece. COVID-19 kept them from one port-of-call and affected some of their travel experience. Others I know have been places or are going soon. They’re brave.

Even though I just got my newly renewed passport in the mail recently (applied for in May), I’m not quite ready to pull the trigger on a trip out of the country.

The most adventuresome plan I’ve made for travel recently is to book a room in Las Vegas for October of 2022. It’s not like me to plan ahead a year in advance for something. But when the football game was announced for BYU versus Notre Dame at Allegiant Stadium, I thought, “Why Not?” (Believe it or not, rooms are already scarce and pricey for that weekend)

Trips make for good memories — for the most part. Traveling away from home creates a segment of time in life that is out of the ordinary which becomes a source of stories and remembrances for often a lifetime.

Over the years, we’ve done some travelling with family and friends. That can be risky. Mark Twain famously said, “I have found out that there ain’t no surer way to find out whether you like people or hate them than to travel with them.”

Sometimes you wonder if a friendship or family relationship is going to be ruined as the result of a trip together. We’ve been fortunate, that hasn’t happened.

Some years ago, we took a relatively quick trip with another couple who wanted company for the first part of a longer trip. We flew to Detroit, rented a car, and put over a thousand miles on it.

Traveling puts people into each other’s lives on an intimate basis. You discover meal schedules and food preferences, sleep time needs and habits (whether people snore or not, in some instances), and how people act during stretches of long drives.

Once I decided to join in, I was okay with all the singing in the car. The woman of the other couple (let’s call her Colleen — since that’s her name) wanted to sing about everything. When it was raining she’d say, “How many songs do we know about “rain.” Then we’d sing. When the sun was shining it was, “How many songs do we know about “sunshine.” Then we’d sing. Etcetera, etcetera, etcetera.

Another travel quotation that I like (and there are a lot of them) is from Susan Heller. She says, “When preparing to travel, lay out all your clothes and all your money. Then take half the clothes and twice the money.”

Upon arriving in Detroit, we found out at the baggage claim area that Colleen’s bag didn’t arrive with us. I noticed right away that the airlines never use the word “lost” when referring to the luggage. The phrase, “luggage not available upon arrival” is what they use.

I thought of what comedian Bob Hope used to say — something about that he’s been to almost as many places as his luggage. The baggage people for Delta really were very nice and gave each of us, even if we had our bags, an overnight kit which included a one size fits all tee shirt. We gave all our T-shirts to Colleen.

Colleen wondered whether anyone would notice that she would appear in the same tee shirt in every picture for the entire trip. That would be the sign of someone who packs light.

Crossing into Canada, we were punished for our laughing and good moods. When asked if we had alcohol, tobacco, or other things in the car, we made jokes and giggled. We were a little more somber while standing outside the car while border agents riffled through our luggage with a dog sniffing at things. (That has become a favorite travel memory)

The “unavailable luggage” magically was waiting for us at our Niagara Falls hotel the following night. We all gave a “hallelujah” at the registration counter.

And then in an inexplicable gesture of niceness, the young woman checking us in gave us complimentary upgrades to “Falls View Presidential Suites.” If losing a bag were the motivation for that, I’d volunteer to go without my suitcase for a day on every trip.

There are some really nice people in the world. And, there’s no doubt that we have some of the most terrific people anywhere right here at home. But, we don’t have a corner on pleasantness, kindness, civility and good deeds.

Throughout that trip, and on most any trip we’ve been on, we have met “nice people.” It is affirming to my sometimes-dwindling faith in humanity. While realizing that we always have to be careful, I believe that people are basically good.

Maybe another thing that Mark Twain said is true, “Travel is fatal to prejudice, bigotry, and narrow-mindedness, and many of our people need it sorely on these accounts. Broad, wholesome, charitable views of men and things cannot be acquired by vegetating in one little corner of the earth all one’s lifetime.”

I hope we can get back to “normal travel” before too long. Some of us with “itchy feet” need it. — Merrill

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