Whenever we set out on the road we say “heeere we go” with a particular inflection. Our tradition originates from a bus driver named Gene who, before taking off from a stop, called this out to alert passengers that the bus was going to move so no one would fall. I rode his bus sometimes and Steve knew him, of course, from work. That was only a few years ago but Gene has left this earth. His premature passing was one of many nudges (along with some other pretty hard kicks) behind our decision to sell our house, quit our jobs, and set off on the road trip adventure that both of us have dreamed of seemingly forever.
This manifestation of our journey began almost a year ago on our annual anniversary vacation and it is auspicious that we finally set out on the 22nd anniversary of the day we met. The past year hasn’t been much fun what with lawsuits and work difficulties, the work of prepping our property for sale only for the housing market to go over the edge of awful, and worrying about anything and everything. But now is not the time to look back … we are moving on. Separating from people we love has proven to be the hardest part. I cried my way through my last 3 weeks of work and for Steve, leaving Nicole, just as their renewed daddy-daughter relationship grows into something very special, is wrenching.
I realize though that, even as we drive away, our Santa Cruz family is still part of us. Things will never be the same but they will be good. My morning started with a smile when I checked email (in the parking lot off I-5 where we slept last night) and found I had been cc’d on an emailed “difficult person alert” from the Community Center. The last line is my theme for today … “hope springs eternal” (thanks, Jack!)
Heeeeere we go!
Well, you begin another exciting adventure in your lives. One of my favorite passages is in Genesis 12. God called Abraham out of his comfortable retirement in Haran. God never told Abram where he was to go, offered no insurance policy, no retirement plan, and no computer hook-ups. And poor old Abraham was 75 years old when he started that journey, had no children to take cafre of him if he got sick, and had to put up with a nagging, jealous, manipulative spouse. At least that is not your problem. Anyway, Abram must have had some trip. He only had slow moving donkeys for transportation. Of course, that might have been a positive: it did not cost $4 per gallon to fill them up. Just let them graze, drink, poop, and off you go. Anyway, Abram finally said: “Okay!” He went, as Paul says, simply trusting God. Trust, of course, is just another word for “faith.” You have not revealed your theology to me, but maybe it is the same God calling you on your journey, to sometime, someplace, do God’s will. Who knows? But, as Paul knew so well, without faith there is no future and we simply become prisoners in our own desperate, self-imposed jails, living in the illusion that we are secure or happy. I congratulate you on your faith, your trust, and your willingness to risk all for that new future, that new Promised Land. I hope and pray you receive the same blessings that old Abram received, and that you will find your Promised Land that awaits you. Or maybe, just maybe, the journey is the reward in itself. Whatever awaits you, I applaud you, wish you well, and offer my blessings upon you, whatever they are worth. Love, Dad
Darn, just read over my comments and see that I made a few typing errors. That will teach me to hit the submit button before doing a spellcheck. Sorry about that. Dad
Well, I read your comment and I didn’t find the typos so no worries, Dad (but if you tell me what they are, I will fix them … oh, the power that I have!) Thank you for your blessing. I know that our choices are scary to you. We are scared too and your support is worth a lot. We are most definitely taking a leap of faith that we will find new jobs and new community when the time comes to settle back down.
Right now we are headed to Cottage Grove, a place we already know that we like, and where we already have great friends. It might even be the place we end up. But you are right, the journey itself is the point. What will we learn? Stay tuned and maybe you’ll find out when we do.
Hope you have arrived! Weather from here doesn’t
look to good. Update us every few days so we know
where you are and what you are doing. Love ya
We are still in Springfield, Oregon … at AM Solar, getting the trailer set up with solar panels and charging system. These folks (Deb and Greg) are AWESOME! They set up their waiting room for the dogs, let us “camp” overnight in their warehouse, gave us use of the facilities including shower and an extensive library of books related to life on the road. Deb even steered us to a good vet so Noche’s bandage could get changed after getting wet yesterday. Once again, my faith in humanity is being renewed!