road trip

life is a road trip.

no, come on, bear with me....

we create a destination (our ideas, aspirations, dreams, goals)
we sketch out a map (how to get from where we are to where we want to be)
we fuel up the vehicle (education, experience, mentoring, feedback)
we pack up some supplies (memories, people, things that have meaning)
we enthusiastically hit the road (after graduation or marriage or breakup or getting the keys)
we travel along at the speed limit, happily gaining momentum toward our destination

okay, sometimes we SPEED toward our destination ;0) 

and then

congestion slows us down

there's a big old truck in our way
he's going less than the speed limit - for no good reason at all!
muckin' up everything around him with not a thought in the world about how he's affecting others
so, we honk. we lay on the horn to say 'HEY! I'm here... get outta' the way!'
and when he just goes on his merry, slow, plodding way, ignoring us,
we accelerate. we press harder on the pedal, we grit our teeth, and we pass him up
(legally, on the left)

on the road again, we regain our speed and continue on

until we hit those danged orange cones and 'under construction' signs
they direct traffic down to one lane and cause a snarl
we creeeeeeeep along at a snails pace for miles
(meanwhile we can't see ANY work being done at all)

but then we reach the end of the work zone
and speed off again...

and then there's a pothole - a little thing, but it really shakes us up because it wasn't expected
and maybe bright sun, shining in our eyes. blinds us for a moment to the task at hand
or the darkness of night keeps us from seeing what's coming up ahead
perhaps its someone ridin' up on our bumper, tailgating us and trying to 'draft' off of our efforts
or we are surrounded on all sides by those big bossy trucks, hemming us in and cutting off our escape

it can be frustrating to have our progress impeded, cut off,
or worse:
wrecked and lying bleeding on the side of the road

thing is, there's always gonna' be something on the road of life to deal with
As the great sage Roseanne Rosannadanna said,
"There's always somethin'. If it ain't one thing, it's another."

we might miss an offramp, or take a wrong turn
we might end up going in a completely different direction than our map had led,
and end up making a few U-turns along the way
but some of the best discoveries are made that way!

sometimes our friends ride along with us, singing to the radio turned up loud
sometimes we ride alone.
sometimes we are so damned tired, we have to pull over and rest awhile

keep the pedal to the metal, girls!
keep fillin' up your fuel tank, and looking at that map
this road we are on leads us through some amazing country, inspiring scenery, educational areas,
and lets us experience life in motion.

which is a whole lot better than being stuck in the driveway, dreaming about a trip

it's all worth it!
and it really IS all about the journey...

Thank You, Lori, for the trip of a lifetime! <3
2013: oh, how I wish we could do it again, my friend...