LESSONS FROM AMERICA

"You road I enter upon and look around, I believe you are not all that is here, I believe that much unseen is also here." - Walt Whitman, Song of the Open Road

It can be so easy to get swept up in the pressures and dredges of the world, to get lost within our own lives, that we often lose sight of all that is around us, especially the good, simplicity that surrounds us. One sure way to reconnect to the heart of things is to spend some time in what is deemed "the heartland of America." While it may not be a place I myself am inclined to call home, it certainly holds a place in my heart for its ability to hold on to the basic important matters of life. Traveling the open road from Virginia right through the middle of America to Washington I encountered Southern hospitality, small town pride, countless homages to history, moral and family values, strong work ethics, and my own love of varying landscapes. From the refreshing sight of a closed up downtown on a Sunday in Paducah, Kentucky, to the kindness of strangers asking to take a picture of my mom and me in front of the St. Louis Arch so that we could both be in the picture; from the unsolicited yet welcomed car advice from a fellow traveler at a rest area in Kansas, to the home-style cooking at the small diners in Limon, Colorado and Snowville, Utah; the simplest of things have swelled my heart and reopened my eyes to all that is good and right in this country, and in this life. In this season of transition, while I still battle with all that it entails, I'm very grateful for what the open road brought into my life and mind. It didn't hurt any that to top the trip off I was able to partake in one of America's favorite past-times as well.

The heart of America has reminded me that it is the simple things in life that can create the most joy and happiness and I am going to cling to that as I head into this next chapter of life, whatever it turns out to become.

ON THE ROAD AGAIN

Living the life of a vagabond, my last few days have looked a little something like this:

More to come. . .

TRULY RANDOM RUMINATIONS

Recent Frustration - How am I supposed to verify that I am not a spambot if I can't even read the letters that I'm being asked to type because they're all squished together or curve in abnormal ways? And no, I don't appreciate having to attempt 5 times to authorize my identity because of it. I promise I'm a real person. . . and literate.

Interesting Tidbit -
I hung out in a landfill the other day. Okay, so it used to be a landfill and is now a park, but still. Mt. Trashmore is pretty neat because something that was once, literally, full of crap has now become a beautiful gathering place. I, for one, am appreciative of its transformation since it provides for a great place to go for a scenic jog, not to mention, most recently, it also gave me a chance to play with my new camera.

Truth -
Exactly a week from today I am moving out of my apartment. . . at which point I will be a couch-hopper for two days before taking kids to camp for five days. . .after that, only time will tell where I'll be.

Pertinent -
These lyrics (courtesy of Fernando Ortega):
"Take heart, my friend, we'll go together,
This uncertain road that lies ahead,
Our faithful God has always gone before,
And He will lead the way once again."

SQUIRREL: 1, MEGAN: 0

Today, I had lunch in a park. Today, I learned that I don't like squirrels very much, in fact, there's a good possibility that I might be afraid of them. Today, I felt very certain that a particular one of those little buggers was going to attack me. Today, I sacrificed my picnic table in order to find a safe haven from said squirrel. . .only to look back as I was walking away to see that he had scurried on top of the table and was sprawled out in the same place that my lunch had been just seconds before. Today, I let a squirrel be victorious over me.

YOU'RE NEVER TOO OLD

True, I technically may still be in the prime of my life but there are some things that even at my age I've felt like it's too late to experience and/or learn. Obviously I can't go back in time and do certain things that you can only do at certain times of life, but in all reality there are countless things that I could still try, experience, learn, and perhaps even master. It's never too late, and you're never too old. Wanted to be a dancer? Sign up for dance classes through a community center. Longed to go sky-diving? Do it, if George H.W. Bush can do it, so can you! Wished you could have gone to camp as a kid? Go as a counselor or an adult guest. For me, I'm going to start by aiming to become much better at playing the piano, learning to snowboard (after all I do still have all the gear for it, hmm), and learning to play the guitar. Who knows, maybe I'll discover that I have a talent yet. Now, for all of you, get out there and try your hand at something you've always wanted to do! Who knows, maybe you'll find what you were meant to do, or at the very least, have a smashingly good time.

OUT WITH THE OLD

After having been back in Washington for the past week and having a head full of thoughts I’ve been finding it a little difficult to go to bed at a decent hour. So instead of drifting off to dreamland, last night I found myself cleaning out my closet at one in the morning. In comparison to others I don’t really possess a large quantity of clothing items so in reality I probably shouldn’t be getting rid of what I do have but for some reason I’ve always been a person who loves to downsize and get rid of things, it’s weird. Being mindful of the fact that regardless of where I’m going next I do know that I will not be staying in my current abode a month from now, I figured that starting to consolidate what I own would be helpful in moving from one place to another, not to mention, it would give me an opportunity to give into my “cleaning out” compulsion. What I wasn't expecting though was that my compulsion would be met with a wave of nostalgia and the appearance of my indecisiveness. How was it that all of a sudden clothes that I hadn't worn in over a year or ones that were relics from the high school years were being reconsidered before being tossed into the Goodwill pile? Would I really ever wear them in public again, much less, at all? My thought process went something like this:

- Oh yes, the shirt from Stinky Sneaker [a high-school basketball game spirit competition] my sophomore year, I love the images on that one.
- But ew, red doesn't look the best on me. And let's face it, I'll probably only wear it to work out in, which I tend to get a very red face when I work out, and red on red. . . hmm.
- But, how could I get rid of it after having it for all of these years?

- Oh my gosh, I totally forgot I even had this shirt. It's gotta go.
- But wait, let me just try it on first.
- Actually, it's not bad, and I could wear it under that cardigan or it would look good with those pants. . .

Needless to say, something that should've taken probably an hour max. kept me up until almost four in the morning. Which begs the question, why is it so hard to get rid of/let go of certain things? Do we desire to hold on to the items that link us to our past just so that we can imagine ourselves in that time once again? Or do we needlessly justify the worth of something just to keep it around 'just in case' even though we know that we really don't need it? (And yes, I'm no longer simply referring to clothes here. ) Do we find too much of ourselves in other things, other people, that we struggle with giving them up at the right time, instead of clinging to what it is that we really need? While I may have had to reconsider some of the choices that I made in regards to my 'keepers' and 'tossers' with my clothes, I eventually forced myself to part with more clothing items than I had initially placed in the discard pile, coming to terms with the fact that I didn't really 'need' many of those items that I tried to justify. In addition to realizing the necessity to let go of unnecessary items in my possession, I've come face to face with the reality that our lives often need to have a good cleaning out every now and again too, letting go of things from the past that we're holding onto that impinge on our moving forward, or getting rid of things that we hideaway or try to justify when it's blatantly obvious that there's not a beneficial need for them in our life, and instead turning our focus to those things that we truly need in our lives in order to be who we're meant to be and to live the lives that we're meant to live. Perhaps that's why I have a "cleaning out" compulsion, it always feels good for my soul to be less burdened by items I no longer need and makes me feel a bit more free. To clean out one's life? Ah, even better for the soul and a whole lot more freedom.