Kansas Snapshots by Gloria Freeland - April 24, 2026

Bored with myself

I'm usually easily amused - a trait that has served me quite well throughout my life. So I approach each season as if it's the first time I've experienced it. Leaves turning blazing reds and oranges in autumn? Love it! First winter snow? Ditto! Leaves greening up and flowers popping up in the spring? Fabulous! Fourth-of-July fireworks and fields full of crops? Feels sweet as home!

However, the past few months have challenged my sense of wonder. At one point in February, I even asked husband Art when the last time was that I had expressed joy at anything. Things felt "wrong" and I asked myself whether I'd ever feel that wonder and joy again.

I kept rationalizing that I had a reason for my "funk." Diagnosed with breast cancer in August, I've had various surgeries and treatments since mid-September, which have collectively zapped my energy and with it, my zest for living.

At some point in March, both Art and I decided a change of scenery and a change of pace were needed. I told people I was bored with myself and ready for an "adventure" - whatever form that might take.

Art and I had talked about going to Wisconsin, but we weren't sure whether I'd feel well enough to travel. We eventually decided to fly from our home in Manhattan to his hometown of Appleton. We'd drive back to Kansas a couple of weeks later with the car we had left in the garage at his family home.

The April 1 flight was routine - a hop from Manhattan to Chicago, a three-hour layover, and a flight from Chicago to Appleton. Art's cousin Kris picked us up and took us to our home-away-from-home. The vehicle we had left started, but the left-front tire was low, necessitating a trip to get a tire pump.

Everything in the house was fine, thanks to neighbors across the street who mow during the growing season, shovel snow during the winter, and check the thermostat every few days during the cold months to make sure the furnace is working.

A couple of weeks before our visit, Appleton had 27.5 inches of snow, the second-highest snowfall on record. That would have been quite a change of scenery, but I was entirely ok with missing that one! Seeing it piled high in parking lots, even as temperatures rose well above freezing, was more than enough.

Art went about getting us settled comfortably - putting the thermostat up to warm the house, turning on the water, and turning on the gas to the cook stove.

Our first evening was great, thanks to Kris's generosity. Knowing we wouldn't be much in the mood to buy groceries or cook, she had brought us homemade ham-and-bean soup, spaghetti with meat sauce, cheese, bread, pumpkin pie, and other goodies.

Although Appleton was colder than Manhattan and I am not a cold-weather person, I was already enjoying that change of scenery.

We saw Kris several times during our stay and got together with her, Art's cousin Jeff, and wife Lorraine for a meal and lively conversation. I always enjoy hearing the cousins talk about their growing-up years and telling tales of various family members.

From Appleton, we traveled to Madison to visit daughter Katie and her husband Matt. We ate at a Thai restaurant in what had once been an ordinary home in a residential neighborhood. Far away from any commercial area, it felt as if we were having supper with a new bunch of friends. The next day was quite the opposite. The strip restaurant near the university was filled with students. We chatted with the two good-looking "boys" at the table next to us who plan to be doctors. They had just finished struggling with a biochemistry assignment.

Friend Jo's farm in a valley in southwest Wisconsin was our last stop. She had just lost her significant other John a week before. It was a bittersweet time - remembering the good times with him. We liked him a lot, and he and Jo were perfect partners. It is so hard to accept we won't see him again.

On Sunday, Jo needed a change of scenery, too, so we drove to Spring Green, the location of architect Frank Lloyd Wright's famous Taliesen home. We didn't see it, but it was a fun town to visit, with several buildings designed in Wright's "organic architecture" style. Other buildings were more Victorian, with elaborate details around the windows and doors. We spent nearly an hour in a bookshop. As we finished making our purchases, the sky opened up. Art was going to wait for the rain to stop, but Jo and I were more in the mood to experience another spring adventure while walking to the car.

The following day involved time on Jo's porch, soaking in the beauty of the emerging spring. The daffodils were blooming and tiny light-blue and dark-blue flowers were spread throughout the grass, provided an inviting contrast. As evening closed in, the "peepers" were singing in the wetland reeds nearby, the beavers were chit-chitting in the nearby pond, and the sky was lit up with lightning. In the nearby woods, owls called to each other. Once we were inside, a thunderstorm arrived, pelting the windows and scaring one of Jo's cats.

We were reluctant to leave on Tuesday morning, but I was also eager to see what changes we would see in Kansas after being away for two weeks.

I wasn't disappointed. Peony buds had appeared, irises had begun blooming, the trees had leafed out, and our Flint Hills were greening.

Two days after our return, "German son" Tim arrived for a four-day visit. A bonus was getting to spend "GG" - Grandma Gloria - time with granddaughter Diana.

It seemed as if I had been bored with myself for a long time. But family, friends, a scenery change, the arrival of spring, and the pain of John’s loss had swept that away and reminded me that I was alive and to be thankful.