Last fall my friend Terra and I took a much-needed, if short, vacation. According to USA Today, upper Michigan’s M-22 highway is the best scenic drive for viewing the autumn foliage. Terra sent me the link.

“I'm kinda wanting to do this. Any interest?”

“Sure!”

Next thing you know, we were coordinating our busy schedules to sneak away for a few days. We booked flights to Detroit and interesting Airbnb rooms along the route. We couldn’t get away until the end of October, but we were hoping the warm fall would delay the peak color until we got there.

The leaves did not disappoint. Absolutely stunning. The pictures don't do it justice. If you ever get the chance, go.

Tough road

Getting to Michigan was no big deal. Getting to this place in life where I was free to make the decision to go, able to afford it, and comfortable with taking a few days off from work was more of a challenge. Neither Terra nor I had taken an especially easy path through life. I had chosen a career in engineering, then high-tech sales, where men greatly outnumber women and there are plenty of roadblocks along the way. I had two ex-husbands, and raised my children mostly as a single mother while advancing my education and my career. Terra and her second husband raised 4 girls, and Terra went back to school to get her degree once the youngest was in high school. She’s now working in her career, and active in her local League of Women Voters, fighting for the rights of women.

Easy Street?

Terra and I were enjoying the drive through the back roads of Michigan, taking in the sights and stopping wherever we felt like it. When I saw the sign along the road for Easy Street, I pulled a hard left.

“Easy Street, we have to go this way!” I laughed. Terra agreed.

We both saw it at the same time.“I knew it!” we shouted, then doubled over laughing.

Easy street was a dead end.

I had to stop the car. We were laughing so hard we almost peed ourselves. I got out to try to capture it in a picture, because who would believe it? It was hard getting both signs in the frame, but I did it.

Enjoy the scenery

Yes, Easy Street was a dead end. My parents always told me that, and now it was confirmed. I have cried to my mother more than once, “Not fair!”

Life is not always fair, or easy. There are few signs that say “This way sucks.” Perhaps if there were, we wouldn’t take that road.

But even down the rockiest road, filled with potholes and twists and turns you don’t expect, there can be beauty, and great friendships made along the way.

Don’t miss it.