I was laid off in November 2025. I loved my job as a technical writer. My team, learning the product, and my company. I planned to be there until I retired and out of nowhere I was laid off. My world reeled.

But this safari, a dream of a lifetime, that I had set up months before, became a transition. By accident, it is in its own way a bridge from before, when I was working; to now, when I’m not; to my future, when I may be on a fixed income or may be working or who knows. (Disclosure: the term fixed income scares me to death.)

I figure a lot of folks are going through such transitions, even if they do not seem similar. A divorce. A death. A realization of focus that needs to change. Change is scary and painful. But can it also be a blessing?

I set up and paid for the safari months ago, when I thought life was stable. Funny, this was the first time in my life I felt that way. I know everyone is expendable. And there had been layoffs for 3 years previously. The company that made employees a priority was no longer. How many of us have experienced this?

Anyway, sorry for the digression. I paid for the safari, but also I wanted to make a concrete action of faith. My MO has always been to scrabble into a cave, cancel everything, and stop spending money. This time I wanted to claim, “Yes, I will be okay.”

However, even the idea of me, an introvert that borders on being a hermit, going to Africa, renting a car, finding my way, and navigating it all is so terrifying I don’t know if I can do it. On the other hand, if I don’t go I will never forgive myself so I will go. And then come back. And start over.

This blog accompanies that journey. From the shaky starts, the trip, to the return, and then…what.

Let’s see how that goes.