You Can't Always Get What You Want

The longest car ride we took, was after I graduated college in the late eighties.  We were ready to start a family without much success.  I had surgery and had the worst cast scenario.  I had endometriosis and my fallopian tubes were completely full of scar tissue and weren't functioning.  It was a long surgery and the Doctor was able remove all the scar tissues on all of the organs.  But, I was put on a drug for six months and during that time it would be impossible to get pregnant.  So, construction work had come to a grinding halt.  And, believe it or not we were dreading another summer in house across the street from the beach.  It was loud, our neighborhood was obnoxiously rowdy and all the joy was gone.  

We came up with a plan to buy a pop up camper and then sell it when we came back.  And, it was very easy to find tenants to rent our house out for the summer.  We had already taken a train and flew cross county that year.  And, if I wasn't going to get pregnant, we were considering moving to the Seattle area in Washington State.  

We drove first to Florida to visit family and then came back to the area for fourth of July and then headed west.  We didn't get through Pennsylvania before the axel cracked on our brand new camper.  It brought us to where they make RV's in Shanomish, Indiana.  It was amish country and it ended up one of our favorite parts of the trip.  

But, really the best part of the trip was the freedom to go anywhere and spend as much time as we wanted.  We visited the National Parks of Yellowstone and the Grand Canyon.  We would spend hours in the park just driving the meandering roads.  It was after the big fires in Yellowstone and we could see all the destruction it had caused.  But, from what we read forests need to be taken down to nothing in order to renew and come back better then ever.  I soaked that in!  The ugliness of the blackened trees became a beautiful and hopeful sight to see.  We started buying classical music CD's at the gift stores.  We would see prairie dogs and bison without having to search for them.  The beauty each day was natural and abundant.  The wildflowers were in full bloom.

So. many lessons were learned on this trip, it is hard to pick one to focus on.  But, I would say if you are struggling with something, get inspired by something bigger then you.  Even, if it reading a book or magazine.  Go to a National Park virtually on the computer.  Listen to music that finds your heart and makes it want to burst.  Be in awe of the natural beauty all around you.  Wake up early for the sunrise.  Enjoy the outdoors when the sun is setting and the sky turns the most beautiful shade of pink.  Stop and smell the roses.  Take this time and try to see all of the good that is right outside our windows.

Quote of the day:  “Happiness is like a butterfly; the more you chase it, the more it will elude you, but if you turn your attention to other things, it will come and sit softly on your shoulder…” Henry David Thoreau

Song of the day:  You Can't Always Get What You Want by the Rolling Stones