I get asked, quite frequently, “Won’t you miss your life?”

Of course I will. You can’t spend six months away from the people and things that make up your daily life and not miss them. So I thought I would share with you the people and things that I will miss most.

This is Dale. We have been together pretty much every day of the last six years. I’m going to miss waking up next to him, and staying up late watching movies, and going to game night with our friends. I’m going to miss his wicked sense of humor and his annoying habits and just seeing his face every day.

This is Derek. My child has been my saving grace and biggest challenge for the last 25 years, and I will miss being able to talk to them at the drop of a hat, having long book / movie / philosophical discussions, being called Mommy when they are upset or hurt. I will miss hearing their voice and their quick wit, their sarcastic nature… everything about them.

This is my mom, Judy. We talk nearly every day, especially since my dad died and Harvey destroyed my childhood home. As much as I hate talking on the phone, I’m going to miss her weird calls about not much of anything, I’m going to miss her dry humor and her insights into people that will floor you. I’m going to miss her laugh, and her helplessness with technology and her psychic ability to know when I need a pick-me-up.

I will miss my friends. Peter, Steve, Mary, Bill, Susan, Greg, Chris, Jen, Phil, Jayme, Joe and Joel. I will miss game night every Thursday and nights out at bars and concerts and parties. It’s not just people that I will miss…

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I will miss snuggling with my cats. I will miss their personalities, I will miss their meows and their purrs and everything about waking up with fifteen pounds of cat laying on you. I will miss knitting as a full contact sport with these guys, and knowing that they are waiting for me every night.

I will miss Facebook and keeping up with all my friends on there. I will miss my knitting / yarn friends on Instagram and my manicurist, Helen. I will miss my manicures and pedicures. I will miss driving when I’m upset and I will miss my big comfy bed.

So why am I going if I have this much to miss? Because I need to. Because everything in me says “climb that mountain.” Because I will be a better girlfriend, mother, daughter and friend when I come home.

Telling you all the things I will miss helps me to put that into perspective. I need to acknowledge all that I will miss, and all that will miss me. I need to deal with the pain now so that it doesn’t become a reason to cut my hike short.