Sunday, July 12, 2009

Getting Ready for the Road

You know how, when you are giving your computer too many commands, a little rainbow circle (on a Mac anyway, maybe on a PC there is another shape) spins around and around like a beach ball? Joshua and I call that "beachballing." As our family gets ready to embark on a two month Odyssey in our Honda Odyssey across America, we are finding ourselves beachballing! There are a lot of things to think about in preparation for this big trip, but little by little we are getting it done, so long as we don't give our brains too many commands at once.

Aside from the beachballing, there are many feelings to contend with: sadness at leaving the Morimotos for a little while, excitement about traveling, overwhelment with having so many details to think about.

One very cool thing about all this is, that twenty years ago, soon after we graduated from Oberlin College, Joshua and I traveled cross country for two and a half months before we went to Japan. We had a little red 1981 Ford Escort that had a manual transmission with only four gears, manual windows, and no power steering. We called that wonderful little car Sadie Sue Smilowitz and she lovingly zipped around the whole country for us, showing us everything from the Smoky Mountains to the Rockies and a whole lot more in between. Now it is a few decades later and we are going on the road with our family of five. We will show our children the spot where we got married, the Seaquest State Park in Washington state which inspired us so much, the Grand Canyon where a little piece of itself got lodged in my right index finger, and the chance for our children to meet some of the people that we knew before they were born, that we still love and are so excited to see.


For the last six months we have been living with our dear friends, the Morimoto family, in western Massachusetts. We have been visiting with them for the last eighteen years, every six to eight weeks. Who knew it would partially be in preparation for such an extended visit? Living with them for six months straight has certainly upped the intensity and intimacy levels, but it has felt very natural and joyous. Words cannot really describe the love and gratitude we feel for them, but hopefully they can feel it without the words. It is a daily feeling of abundance and appreciation, having such wonderful friends to love and be loved by.

So off we go, with a departure date set for Thursday, the 16th. More news, stories and pictures to follow.

Stay in touch dear ones!

2 comments:

  1. I'm so glad you have started this and I will be tuning in regularly.
    I wish you all well, may your trip be joyous, enlightening, insightful and safe.
    I'll be thinking of you...until I see you again, all my love.

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  2. Thanks dear friend!
    More soon.....xo

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