I moved from the BLM campground to a Best Western in Moab downtown on November 1. The sole reason for this was for a Probate Court hearing on November 2. My Mom had died in April 2020, and she had put some assets in my name: a checking account, a life insurance policy, and her car. These came to me upon her death. She had told me how she wanted these assets distributed, and I planned to do that. My sister Patty and brother Kenny did not like that Mom had told me she wanted some money to go to Saint Peter’s Church and some to myself. They filed a petition to have the money put into probate, so it would be handled like everything else in Mom’s Estate. The hearing would be online at 4PM Eastern time. The result of that hearing was the judge ruled that the assets were clearly left to me, and that probate had no authority to do anything with them.
So, I was downtown for a few days. I had never really walked through the downtown area. I had been to Moab about a dozen times in my life, sometimes with friends, sometimes on my own. The only place I knew was the grocery store, where I had been on several of my trips to Moab.
I checked into the hotel Monday 11/1 and did prep work for the hearing. The hearing took place Tuesday 11/2, it went pretty quick and smooth, and it was over. I felt good about it being done, that the judge had said the court had no authority in the matter, and she would send out her ruling in the near future.
Meanwhile, Laura kept in touch briefly via text messages. She left Colorado National Monument on Monday, October 24, headed for Black Canyon of the Gunnison National Park, with intent to go to Mesa Verde National Park from there. She did visit Black Canyon, but the weather was so cold and snowy that she opted to go to Mesa Verde another time. On October 27, she was at Capitol Reef National Park and planned to stay there for several days. This was a geographic surprise, because it is quite a distance from Black Canyon and is on the other side of Moab. I told her I was going to Moab, and from there I was heading towards Zion and Bryce. She said that sounds great, and maybe she would meet me at one of those places for a hike.
Then a few days later, she texted she was at Natural Bridges National Park, then Mesa Verde, and then to Canyonlands Needles District. I learned she did not mind driving! On Tuesday, November 2, she texted she was leaving Canyonlands and was going to come to Moab, going to Arches National Park, and asked what time I’d be done with the probate hearing. I told her probably by 3:30. She texted back “Excellent.”
Later that day, after the hearing, I walked downtown checking out various businesses. I stopped at a food truck and had Beans & Rice. As I was waiting in line to order, I noticed a familiar looking woman walking across the street. I studied her for a second, then I realized I had met her a couple days before on a trail at Arches. She had been hiking with her husband, and I offered to take some photos of the two of them. They were from Oregon, and they were staying in town not far from the food truck. Small world, I thought to myself.
Then, as I was eating, Laura texted me she was leaving Arches and heading into town, where she would find my hotel. Ten minutes later, I got another text. She said she thinks she just passed me, sitting where I was at a table at the food truck! Synchronicity #1. So, she parked at my hotel, a couple blocks away, and met me at the food truck.
We walked downtown briefly on the way back to my hotel, where she could do her laundry if she liked. She put in a wash, then we walked downtown some more and walked around. We passed a store that advertised T-Shirts as its main business. She said she liked the way it was set up, and she thought it would be a good place/model for her product(s). I was not sure what these products were, but I did know she had created an activity calendar for kids. It had daily activities by the month for the entire year. She hoped to make it available in National Parks. This was part of her Other Nice People (ONP) company, about which I did not know much. I had seen an ONP sticker on her car, and I had Googled it, but I could not find a web presence.
We went for a beer at a bar/restaurant off of Main Street: The Spitfire Smokehouse. We sat and talked, had a fun time, then went back to move her clothes from the washer to the dryer. We sat outside and talked more while waiting for the clothes to dry. Then she went back to her campsite. I had told her about the BLM campgrounds on Route 128 and she was staying at one of them.
Next morning, I texted her I was staying in town another day, and she responded she was going to go the library in town, but we did not make any plans to meet. Later that morning, I took a walk up to the grocery store about four blocks away, and, as I am walking, I look up, and I see a familiar looking vehicle coming out of a driveway, like 15 feet away from me, and it’s Laura. Synchronicity #2. I think she said she had stopped for a coffee at the place she was pulling out from.
Later that day, I went for a bike ride from the hotel up to Route 128. I rode 128 out for about seven miles, then turned back. When I got to the intersection of 128 and 191, I hesitated, first heading back to the hotel, then turning around and heading north on the bike path to Arches NP, about two miles up the road. I ended up getting pretty wet, as it started to rain, lasting about 30 minutes or so. At Arches I turned around, then rode back to the hotel. Later that evening, Laura texted me and said she saw me at the intersection, where there is a park, and she said she was there making hard boiled eggs. Synchronicity #3.
We talked on the phone later that day, and we made plans to head to Zion and meet up there. I had a site reserved for several days, we could share it, as it appeared the campground was full. So, next day we, heading to Zion.
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