Looking, Lauging and Learning

A new friend (Nancy), whom I met while at my conference in MD, sent me the following in an email on our first full day of travel:

English writer G.K. Chesterton said, “The traveler sees what he sees; the tourist sees what he has come to see.” When I arrive anywhere—whether the situation is familiar or foreign to me—I view the event with traveler’s eyes. I do not simply focus on what I hoped or planned to see, as a tourist might. Instead, I set aside preconceived notions and expectations. I soak in the experiences of the present moment.

Whether I am traveling or at home, I journey through the day as a full participant. I engage deeply with the world—open to new lessons, new insights, and to being utterly transformed by everything I encounter. I walk with traveler’s eyes along the blessed and sacred journey of life.

Open my eyes, so that I may behold wondrous things.­—Psalm 119:18

As I write this post (day 6), we are about a half hour outside of Paducah, KY. Pretty exciting, to say the least, and wasn’t on my original radar since we had planned to head to Arkansas from Tennessee. In case you are not familiar with the significance of Paducah, it is only the home of the National Quilt Museum and considered the quilt capital of America! Mark is planning to drop me off for a few hours and do some bonding with his motorcycle without a tag-along!

 

Our first week is coming to a close and I can’t believe that it has only been 6 days since we started out. Covering 9 states in 6 days, visiting 4 state parks (MD, VA, TN), and putting 1,350 miles on the truck, we have learned a lot already. Here are some lessons so far:

·      When descending down a mountain road towing a trailer, apply all means possible for controlled and safe descent; i.e. low gear engine braking, selective trailer braking, extended distance relative to forward vehicles…hot brakes = soft braking hazard. A brief pull over solved the problem but didn’t alleviate some fear and worry.

checking the brakes

following a slow logging truck 

·      Quick and efficient camp set-up and take down…each of us taking on our critical roles. My role feels much like an airline flight attendant preparing galley for take off and landing while Mark checks the outside of the camper before take-off, checking for mechanical and functional needs.

·      Non-verbal communication is essential when directing trailer hook-up and backing in. Enough said?!

·      Small spaces require constant maintenance and upkeep for a happy life wife.

·      Not all state parks are created equal…we’ve stayed at the best and the worst. But with that said, I really have come to realize that our state/national parks are one of our most valuable assets that must be preserved and maintained.

Hungry Mother State Park nature center.

Seeing our vacation through the eyes of a child

·      Planning ahead is essential but time consuming. Sometimes I wonder if having available Internet access is a blessing or a curse when camping. As I research places to stay and see, I get distracted and overwhelmed with information and discouraged at what I’m not able to see and do.

Al play and no work...!

·      You can’t prepare for everything until you try it out…so bring a few key tools, some extra hardware and the credit card for everything you didn’t think of.

·      Words of wisdom from previous travelers, Bob and Arlene Blum to purchase the Good Sam GPS for the trip. So glad we took their advice!

Puts our "rig" in perspective!

As far as highlights go:

·      The quaint river front town of Paducah, KY and all of the local businesses/shops. Especially the locally owned shoe store that started in business selling Earth Shoes (1975) and the owner’s 92 year-old mother who shared her life and area history with us.

·      The kind young woman who graciously gave us directions on the back roads of Tennessee when we found ourselves lost (even with an IPhone) and late for meeting our college friends for dinner.

·      Meeting up with our friends Dave and Barb, whom we haven’t seen since probably 1980? A reunion much too short…until next time.

·      The concept of campground “hosts” who are resident campers available and assist campers in their specific campground area. I wonder if it is a southern thing or just haven’t done enough NY state park camping in recent years.

·      The symphony of rain on the roof and nighttime “peepers” that have lulled us to sleep each night.

·      Stopping at a local farmers market for some fresh produce for dinner and stopping each day for  enough food for a few days and then getting creative with meal preparation.

"Glamping" dinner after a day of driving.

Early pre-departure breakfast outside our backdoor along a peaceful brook at Montgomery Bell State Park.

·      Mark’s smooth & skillful mastery of winding, rolling hills and hairpin turns on the Harley!

·      Our ever-improving communication skills! 

So, as it turns out, I’m finishing this blog after visiting the Quilt Museum and Mark decided to go along with me to view the exhibits afterall. In his words, “Wow, amazing… detailed craftsmanship and flawless execution.” I think that means he was impressed.  He’s always had an appreciation for those who skillfully work with their hands. Until next time, thanks for traveling through my eyes! 

Coming up next: St. Charles, MO; Missouri Star Quilt Shops in Hamilton, MO; camping at Watkins Mill State Park and Museum (textile history) near Kansas City; somewhere in Kansas…State Park camping, then on to Colorado to meet up with Neel and Nancy in Mesa Verde! I’m getting really excited!

Underway

And so our journey begins. I sit waiting for Mark to arrive to pick me up from a 4-day conference at the Bon Secours Retreat and Conference Center in Marriottsville, MD. He should be pulling up within the hour, camper packed & towing our well organized and planned out, motorcycle trailer. He got a late start this morning, which is not a surprise, considering all the finishing touches and details he had left to do when I spoke to him last. The 7AM start turned into 10AM and I imagine his lack of a full-nights sleep will be evident when he arrives. We will be staying at Gambrill State Park in western Maryland, which looks to be about an hour away from our meeting point.

We have tried to think of everything and plan for any possible scenario. We outfitted the trailer with all of the things that we will need but don’t want to take up room in the camper/truck itself…the grill, motorcycle accessories, hoses, cords, shoes & boots, most of our needed clothes and hanging items, lawn chairs, camper jacks in case of an emergency, tool box, trailer dolly, spare tire, and of course the motor cycle. This allows us to easily set up and take down for our daily transitions from place to place. We even practiced driving the motorcycle in and out of the trailer to make sure it would work. 

Before leaving for the conference I tried to think about our daily life in our new “tiny home” that we call a camper and be sure we could easily enter/exit locations, as well as enjoy our space without feeling overrun with “things.” After much discussion, brainstorming and switching things from place to place (and maybe an argument or two), I came to the realization that we have to leave room for learning something.  After all I am a teacher and that is what experiential learning is all about. We would have to try it out for size and plan for adjustments along the way. That will be the fun of our trials and mistakes. Mark is always up for revision and improvement, so I’m sure we will be continually thinking about how to “make it better. “

I’m excited and I have to admit a little anxious about our next 6 weeks. I don’t want to miss anything and I don’t want to waste any of our precious time being idle. At the same time I don’t want to be so focused on “doing” that I miss the opportunity of “seeing,” after all that is what our journey is all about! I hope to be awed, humbled, inspired, and to use this trip to dream and look for nuggets of wisdom from people we meet, places we go, history we discover, and even problems we encounter. We will be taking 2 of our grandchildren along in a make shift suitcase (flat Ellyana and Flat Awut) to share with them via Instagram and emails about our travels.  I’ll most definitely miss their 3-dimensional little smiles and hugs but certainly will enjoy building special memories with them as they see themselves propped and photographed on location all around the country.

So I’m going to open my eyes wide and let the adventure begin!

Getting Ready...

To me, the first days of summer break are some of my favorite days of the year! With the whole summer ahead, there is a hope and sense of freedom that comes to my schedule of what is possible, dreaming about all that the summer will hold.

Before heading out on our adventure we have a fun-filled week of FAMILY time planned for the Adirondacks. Rebecca and Patrick are here from Thailand and Amy just arrived from LA. Shopping, packing and preparation will fill our day in hopes of pulling out tomorrow by 11AM.

Thanks goes to Liz for taking a lead role and keeping us on task and organized by setting up google docs for meal planning and scheduling. The 7 bedroom-2 bath rental house and adjacent 2 bedroom cottage on Ordway Pond (Gore Mountain) Gore Mountain House will be our get-a-way and family memory making location. With family spread out near and far we have loosely planned an every-other-year destination family retreat for catching up and making memories. This year also includes grandparents and a few extended family/cousins to allow opportunity to visit in one place.

So, plans include lots of family games, movies, campfires, walks, boating, relaxing, chasing kids, crafts, creative cooking, reading, discussions, along with sharing memories and exaggerated stories with "significant other" additions to the family! It will be the first time to meet Brian for most of us and Sam's friend Sarah will be joining us and meeting all of the "sisters." They all (Patrick, Brian & Sarah) should get a FULL dose of the Garofano clan...we'll see if they can endure!

We will eat and play with great purpose, storing up memories to carry us until our next adventure! Let the FUN begin....!

I sure hope this food fits?!?!

Our Summer Home Away From Home...

Do you have a plan?

This is the first thing people ask me when they find out that Mark and I are going cross-country this summer. Plans? Well just a few. I'm not really a planner until it is necessary or imminent. I know we want to reach LA by August 1st and have to return home for the start of school in late August. I know we want to see some family and friends along the way and visit as many national parks as possible. But plans? I don't really know how to plan. I have never done this before. My more adventurous trips have been by air and few have been by road. Will we want to take it slow and steady or speed up and then stop and stay? Will we want to notice every little detail or make it to the next known landmark? What will the weather bring and will we be free to choose the Harley or be required to take cover in the truck? Too many variables to predict, so it is a "we'll see" kind of adventure.

I guess the plans are to not make too many plans. To be flexible enough to not get disappointed in failure to meet goals and to be disciplined enough to make steady progress in order to see as much as possible, with the time we have. The plans are to learn more about ourselves, see with our own eyes beautiful American landscapes, and become acquainted with the diversity of American people. We want to see our friends and family in their surroundings and bring this big country a little closer to home. I want to take lots of pictures that will be a reminder of where we have been and keep the memories with us once we return home.

So those are the plans...and hopefully lack of plans will work to our favor. Of course, in case of poor planning, there is always Walmart!

Stay tuned for our adventures.