Heading Home with a bucket full of memories and one compelling gift.
Thirty-two days of amazing adventures, from Virginia to Arkansas, Colorado, New Mexico, and back to Virginia. We did it all, from reconnecting with friends to soaking in the healing waters of mineral hot springs to meditating at the base of a beautiful Buddhist Stupa. We laughed, we cried, and we bathed in an abundance of gratitude for it all. Life is richer when we take the time to see the beauty in the everyday.
Life is meant for good friends and great adventures.
Anonymous
The drive from New Mexico to Arkansas was much like the drive from Arkansas to Colorado–long, two days of humming along in the car with my dear friend and her dog, Luna. We stopped for gas, walked Luna, stretched our legs, and spent nights in interesting interstate motel rooms. The weather was perfect, and the drive was uneventful.
Arriving back in Little Rock was comforting. We chilled, ate lots of yummy food, enjoyed stimulating conversations with family, and did some sightseeing and shopping in historic downtown Little Rock. We put our PJs on and curled up in front of the TV to watch The Mandalorian while drinking wine and munching on homemade chocolate and freshly popped popcorn. It was awesome and just what I needed after hours spent in the car.
My flights from Little Rock to Norfolk were unremarkable, with one tiny exception. While waiting for a wheelchair to help me get to the gate, I learned that a couple of hours before being dropped off at the Little Rock airport, some not-so-bright person tried to get a handgun through security. This resulted in a short lockdown, causing delays in services such as getting a wheelchair. The delay was a minor hiccup, and soon I was on my way.
Home sweet home
No one realizes how beautiful it is to travel until he comes home and rests his head on his old, familiar pillow.
Lin Yutang
I expected to be tired after spending a month traveling, but I did not expect to feel so completely flat! Not only was I bone-tired physically, but spiritually, I found myself feeling unsure. Why? What was going on?
We awaken continually. Cultivating lasting emotional stability requires a willingness to look and look again.
Jessica Angima
Questioning our beliefs and spiritual path is normal and healthy but can also be unsettling. The more I struggled to get back to my center, that place of comfort and knowing, the stranger I felt. It was disorienting and confusing.
My spiritual path has evolved over the years, as it should. As I write this, I am still in that space of looking and questioning. It’s uncomfortable, but through my practice of breathwork, silence, movement, and meditation, I have made peace with it. I don’t see it as a deterrent. I see it as a beautiful gift, an invitation to deepen and expand my awareness.
Closing note
Travel isn’t always pretty. It isn’t always comfortable. Sometimes it hurts, it even breaks your heart. But that’s okay. The journey changes you; it should change you. It leaves marks on your memory, on your consciousness, on your heart, and on your body. You take something with you. Hopefully, you leave something good behind.
Anthony Bourdain
Thank you for reading and tagging along on this journey with me.