Houston. I Have No Plans

When I set out on what I've been calling my 2026 adventure, I made a promise to myself that a trip to Houston to visit my daughter would be part of it. It took some coordination. Jordan's life is full, her schedule is full, and the last thing I ever want is to show up in a way that creates extra work or obligation. But we found our window, and here we are.

By the time you read this on Sunday morning, I'll have been in Houston since Friday, adjusting to the heat and settling into a few days with Jordan and Anthony, who have been together since their college days.

We haven't overplanned it. We're going to visit Jordan's horse, which takes me straight back to the years I spent driving her down what felt like endless country roads on the way to horse shows and camps. Back then, I logged those miles hauling horses and extra kids without a second thought. Now I get to show up and simply watch her ride. We'll retreat to Houston's museum district when the heat gets serious, which in Houston in late May happens quickly and without apology. And winding through all of it will be Koda, Jordan and Anthony's dog, and, if we're being honest, the true center of that household. My grand-furbaby, as I have taken to calling him.

I'm doing my best, for once, to actually follow the advice I've been offering for years: set it down and trust that whatever didn't get done will still be there on the other side.

Which brings me to you. We are five months into this year. Summer is standing at the door, and if you don't give it some direction, it has a way of filling itself in on your behalf with obligations, noise, and the comfortable busyness that can pass for a life if you're not paying attention. Before that happens, it might be worth sitting with a question or two. What would it feel like if this summer actually belonged to you? What would you do differently if you decided, right now, that rest and joy and the people who matter most were not rewards for finishing the list, but the point of the list?

I didn't have a perfect answer when I booked this trip. I just knew it was time to stop waiting for a better moment.