Stepping out of the Shire

Yesterday, Mom asked me how far my longest solo road trip had ever been. I realized the furthest I had ever driven on my own was to visit my dear friend Katie in Perry, Florida or as she lovingly calls it, "the armpit of Florida."

That distance suddenly felt incredibly short and I realized that I was diving into the deep end without really first learning to swim, and yet, I was so excited, I was ready to tackle the high dive.

On my drive today, I racked my brain trying to think of the farthest north I had been solo. The furthest I could think of was Huntsville, a mere two hours (if that) away. Sure, I went to Chicago on a choir tour, St. Louis on a mission trip and friends and I went to Nashville together just a few weeks ago, but solo? Nope, that was a totally new feeling.

As I crossed the Alabama state line today, an odd feeling came over me, a simultaneous pull towards home and a gust of wind pushing me onward. I felt like Sam as he ventured with Frodo. It was only the very beginning of their incredibly long journey when Sam stopped in the middle of a field and thoughtfully said, "If I take one more step, it'll be the farthest away from home I've ever been." Frodo answered Sam's concerned thought with a quote his uncle Bilbo always told him: "It's a dangerous business, Frodo, going out your door. You step onto the road, and if you don't keep your feet, there's no knowing where you might be swept off to."

Today, I stepped out of my own little Shire, and I can't wait to see where I get swept off to!

Miles traveled: 576.1

Gallons of gas purchased: 19.3

Hours in the car: 9.5

States: Alabama, Tennessee, Kentucky, Illinois and Missouri 

Herman

Six years ago, when I was traveling to Europe, my cousins Laura and her young daughter, Ann Wright gave me a traveling partner, a little blue elephant that can easily fit in my purse. I took pictures of Herman everywhere we went, and he began to gather quite a collection of photographs.

As the years progressed, Herman became a part of my classroom, one of the students' favorite parts of the classroom in fact. Herman would travel the world at night, then send us photographs of where he had been. He would appear somewhere in the PowerPoint on the screen during the day, surprising students and offering interesting facts about a new destination. Students' curiosity about new places, new cultures, new people was automatically piqued.

Herman now has his own Instagram account (@whereisherman) so that former students can continue to follow the travels of this little elephant. For this upcoming road trip, he'll even be sending postcards to the first person who correctly guesses where he is!

We are both looking forward to exploring beautiful places in our own country! 

Preparations

I am just two days away from setting off on my great Western Adventure, and I'm ready... I think!

I've never been on a road trip to this proportion.  Sure, in middle school and high school road trips with the school choir or church youth trip were frequent, and road trips to the beach, Atlanta, Savannah and New Orleans still happen fairly often, but none of those seem to be quite the same.  Those trips always involved traveling with big groups of people, or just enjoying the road on our way to a destination.  It was never as much about the trip, as it was the destination.

This trip is my own, one where the road will be my traveling companion and while the destinations and the friends I get to see along the way are a huge incentive for the trip, the focus of the trip seems to remain on the traveling along the way.

I've also never really been on such a massive trip where the dates of my departure and return were not etched into a flight schedule.  Sure, I have to be back for work in early August, but the glorious part about being in my own car is that I can take my own time sight-seeing, or rushing back if need be.  Sure, I'm a bit anxious about driving that far with merely my thoughts, audiobooks and music to accompany me, but I also know that there are breathtaking spots in this country that I have yet to see, nor do I know how many opportunities I may have to see them, so why not take advantage of them now?  And if something happens, and I realize my own thoughts are not nearly as entertaining as I had planned, well, I'll just take the quickest route home.  But I'm hoping instead that I find my own way meeting new people and seeing some of the many wonders this country has to offer.

What have I packed?  Well, I think just about everything but the kitchen sink.  Which actually, would come in handy if I knew a way to pack it...  You would think I'd be better at this packing thing since I do it so frequently, but I seem to suffer from the "What-if" syndrome.  You know, "what if... the temperature changes drastically and there is a blizzard?"  "What if I fall in a lake and ruin all the clothes I'm wearing?"  "What if I get invited to go to a fancy ball?"  Yes, and I know you're waiting for "What if aliens come down from the sky and... "  But, come on, that would be ridiculous!

My packing skills, nonetheless have never been minimalistic.  Perhaps it was my Girl Scout upbringing, "to always be prepared."  However, when you are going on a road trip in your own car, by yourself, the size of your suitcase doesn't seem to matter as much.  Which is a good thing since I'm planning on camping out both in the desert where temperatures are near 100 and in Glacier National Park where the temperature still reaches freezing at night time not to mention Seattle and Portland where the cool damp air feels more like my beloved England.  So, perhaps I can just blame my overpacking this time on the fact that I will seemingly see all four seasons within the next month.  And of course I've got everything else from duct tape to toilet paper to bug spray to a solar-powered charger.

Since most of my packing is complete, I think I'll move on to more important "what-ifs."  What if this becomes one of my greatest adventures of all times?  What if all other trips seem too small after this one?  I guess, I'll just have to see!

Epic Road Trip

Last year, during the 2012-2013 school year, I had the incredible opportunity to teach abroad in England as a Fulbright Teacher Exchange. I taught an American Studies class to middle schoolers, teaching them history, polititics, geography, food and pop culture. In one lesson, I invited the students to create their own road trip around the USA. I gave them maps, printed out brochures and told them about interesting places. It was then that I realized there was a whole lot of my own country I wanted to see.

So, after years of traveling abroad, I've decided to spend this July seeing a bit of my home country and discovering the many beautiful treasures that she holds.

I've found a great app and website (Roadtrippers) that has allowed me to put in key places I want to see in the country (Mt. Rushmore, Glacier National Park, Seattle, Portland, Arches National Park and Santa Fe) then guides me to good routes and other treasures along the way that I may want to discover. The more I explore what our country has to offer, the more I add to my map!

I am so excited to be embarking on this #dreamroadtrip to explore my home country!

A Wrinkle in Time

One of my favorite books to read to my students is a well-known story that I did not read until a friend suggested I share it with my fourth graders. Madeleine L’Engle’s A Wrinkle in Time is very imaginative story that deals with some difficult subjects in a creative way. An awkward preteen, Meg, journeys through time and space to find her father, a scientist. From space, looking back on our own Earth, she sees a dark shadow creeping up, and she notices that some planets have already succumb to complete darkness while others are still radiant. As Meg learns from her companions, Earth is somewhere in the middle. Meg learns that it is the great artists, thinkers, leaders, philosophers, and even the stars that are fighting off the darkness. Yesterday, on our return from the Caribbean side of Panama, the sky turned grey, but as I looked towards the southern sky, I noticed one puffy white cloud gleaming with sunlight. I was reminded of this story, and how much I loved the image of all beings, even the stars uniting to keep the darkness at bay.

Then, I thought of our trip. No single person, nor even a small group of people can completely scare away the darkness that threatens to take over our planet. But does that mean that as an individual, we shouldn’t even try? Of course not. If we all try, even just a little, each and every day to make the world a better place, think of the difference we could make. This week, for us, I can tell by the smiles of those around me, we are a little brighter; our lights are shining. My hope is that after this week, El Espino, too is shining a little brighter. Our mission this week was to share God’s love with the children of this small community. We accomplished that, and I think we also pushed the darkness back, even if just a little bit.

We are on the plane now, starting our descent into Atlanta. Our movie today was Invictus, which I had been wanting to see. In the movie, Morgan Freeman plays a role he was born to play as Nelson Mandela. The movie showed just a few ways of how he was able to spark change and inspire a country. I thought about how Nelson Mandela too kept the darkness at bay, even with something that seems as simple as a rugby game.

As I placed my head on the pillow last night, I thanked God for the nudge to encourage me to come on this trip. I am SO glad I came, and I feel truly blessed for the opportunities that I have had this week. As I look forward to next few days, weeks, and years, I know I’ll carry this experience with me. I hope to continue trying to make a difference, no matter how small in this world. I hope to continue to join the stars in the quest to keep darkness away from our beautiful planet. May God bless you and help you to find your own way to keep the darkness at bay.

"Give me reason; take me higher"

I love music. If you know me at all, you know that there is usually a song in my head, and quite often, my feet are moving along as well. I love how songs can hold wonderful memories – perhaps singing loud in a car with a best friend, being in a certain place, a dance with a special someone, or just a good memory.

When I hear “Waiting on the World to Change,” I think of my students singing along to words I hope they take to heart. “Livin’ on a Prayer always makes me think of Auburn’s 13 and 0 season, and screaming the song throughout the stadium surrounded by my sisters. When I spent the summer in Italy, Kevin Lyttle’s “Turn Me On” was playing on every corner. “Slice of Heaven” reminds me of being in New Zealand with the kiwis. I cannot hear a John Denver or Michael Buble song without thinking about the Italian/Israeli DJ named Sam. And whenever I hear “500 Miles,” I can’t help but laugh about our trek through Europe when Emily was convinced that I made her walk 500 miles. So many songs are attached to so many memories, and they always bring a smile to my face.

Jesus introduced us to a song that is being played for the World Cup. The song is wonderful, upbeat, peppy and inspirational. We have all fallen in love with it and sing it on the bus as often as possible. The second line of the song is “give me reason; take me higher.” Wow. What a beautiful, simple prayer. Today, as we were dropping off the last of the kids, Chalino busted out with the first line, I contributed the second line, and a child on the bus supplied the third. It is amazing how music can transcend languages.

This morning, we drove into a deep valley that is supposedly the world’s largest volcano created valley. The mountain rims were green, and topped with heavy white clouds that surrounded the hilltops like mist on a cool day. We went to a small zoo in the valley, which as you can only imagine was a highlight for me! We saw parrots, peacocks, turtles, ducks, sheep, rabbits, swans, raccoons, and pheasants with Egyptian styled feathers. I also fed monkeys, a taper, and an ostrich by hand. The ocelots were beautiful, and since you could go right up to the cages, I decided to make friends. She crept towards me at first, then ignored me, but then she returned to the fence. At that moment, she rubbed her head along the fence, in the same loving way my house cats do. With great caution, as her claws were still in the forefront of my mind, I reached in and rubbed her head!

The drive was very scenic, in fact Panama seems like a well kept secret. Undulating green hills are never far away from the blue ocean waters. Many times we were able to see both in the same breath-taking view along the narrow mountain road.

Today was our last day with the kiddos. I loved spending time with them this week, sharing God’s word and His love. I am truly sorry to leave them, and I can honestly say that I would have loved some more time with them. Each day, they would come running, eager and excited about the whole experience. Roberto stayed back to help me work on the journals today. He’s about seven years old with beautiful long eyelashes. He was intent on learning and having fun this week, but like those bright kids in my class, sometimes he has a hard time fitting in. We were able to communicate and enjoy a few laughs. He loved to help, and I was thrilled for some one on one time. Zussy was always the last to be dropped off on the first bus go-round, and since I always rode the bus, we enjoyed time of sharing simple words in both languages, and she even tried to teach me a dance. I couldn’t say her name without thinking of Zuzu and those significant petals of hers, which only helped me to have a special place for Zussy. Her sweet spirit and white smile will not soon leave my memory.

I was a little nervous about teaching Bible School in another language (thank heavens for Jesus who helped to overcome that barrier!). I loved every minute of it though, and felt even more assured that I’m supposed to be working with children. I feel so lucky, not only to feel like I’ve found my purpose, by calling, but also because I think I have the best job on earth. Children have a way of smiling and lighting up an entire room. Children are fun-loving, curious, energetic, funny and full of hope for a better tomorrow. Who wouldn’t want to be a teacher? I feel like teaching is the “reason” God has given me to be here. Now I’m eager to see what He does to “take me higher.”

Family

By this point, we are all a family. If we weren’t family, would we be able to talk about our bowel movements (or lack there of) over the breakfast table? It’s amazing how close you become to people as you work, live and play beside them, especially in a foreign country. Even though we still have a couple of days, things are beginning to come to a close. Tomorrow is our last day with the kids, and tomorrow night, Dick and Barbara are headed to a resort for a week. Jesus too, I assume, will be leaving us when we return to Panama City. Why is it that when you realize the end is near, you want to spend even more time together, treasuring the time? Why don’t we do that from the beginning? But then again, isn’t that the greatest lesson we can learn? To treasure every moment we have?

We took our nightly run to the grocery store and the golden arches, singing a song Jesus introduced us to on the way there and on the return. We shared stories and laughed at things that had happened on the trip. And, I’m not sure how or why it started, but we all sang the Addams Family theme song together, right in McDonalds.

After our assembly line for the crafts the kids will do tomorrow, we decided to teach Jesus and Chalino a very challenging game: spoons! They both caught right on and loved it. Despite the language barrier, we can really always tell what Chalino is up to, and he was a hoot to play spoons with. We laughed and yelled and cackled, surely disturbing the creatures at the camp, but we were “soaking in” sometime with teach other, and so it was all well worth it.

Families may not be what you expect or plan, and they may come in all shapes and sizes, but surely after this trip we must qualify as a family.

This morning, as I was brushing my teeth (with my bottled water), I looked out the open window (which is so much better than a mirror) and watched the puppy chase a chicken. Despite the fact that my mouth was full of toothpaste, I couldn’t help but chuckle and think about what a special place this is.

Speaking of special, we returned to playa negra this morning. It was just as deserted and just as perfect as two days ago. The tide was lower though, so I was able to do some treasure hunting. I found purple, blue, pink, orange, and white shells. I guess I do have a good bit of my father in me, although shells are not nearly as heavy as rocks!

Our time with the kids is just priceless. I love watching them intently doing a simple craft, or soaking in a story, or learning a new dance. Today in recreation, Barbara had purchased some type of special balloons that were long and thin. When you inflated them and let them go, they would fly about in wild patterns as a typical balloon would do. However, these went a much longer way for a lot longer. The kids were absolutely hysterical running around as a clump trying to catch the balloon.

As any teacher would do, at the beginning of the story, I ask for the children to tell me about what we’ve learned so far. Although I’m not sure they understand the true meanings of all of the parables, I believe they remember them. In all honesty, they will remember us being here and the kindness we showed for a lot longer than they will remember the words I have said. But I still hope that I have planted these stories into good, rich soil.

Each afternoon, we seem to end up sitting on the porch of cabin one discussing the day, snacking and resting. Several years ago my parents were on the first crew that helped to lay the foundation for cabin one. I remember hearing stories about how many corners the building had and how hard the ground was. I love sitting on the porch that they started. I feel connected to them and I love it. I love being connected to my family.