I was in Chicago last fall, and dreaded it.
The weather was drizzling and chilly, and all I wanted to do was go home.
My husband had meetings all day, and I was stuck in the hotel. The HVAC system worked well, but I wasn’t in the mood for a hotel room. I remembered my mom telling me that we had family that lived right outside of Chicago in a small suburb called Alsip, IL. I got in a taxi and asked them to take me to Alsip. He looked at me oddly and asked where in Alsip. I put up a finger while I called my mom. She gave me the address for her sister. When we got there, I felt a bit odd walking up to the house and telling them I was their niece. I stood outside the door, and it suddenly opened. They were located near an old cemetery that was marked as Burr Oak Cemetery, and mom told me that would let me know I was in the right area. The woman who opened the door looked so much like my mom that I almost cried. I told her who I was and she welcomed me like she had known me my entire life. Her home was warm and dry unlike the cold drizzle that was falling outside. I told her my husband was at an HVAC convention in Chicago, and mom told me I had to look her up. After talking for almost two hours, I got into a taxi and had to go back to the hotel. I felt like I was home when I was with my aunt, and I didn’t want to leave.