These are the words I heard many times over the speaker while riding the Amtrak train to Grand Junction a couple of weeks ago. One of the conductors finished each announcement by saying "here we go". At first, it was funny. I'm not sure he even realized that he said it. It was just habit. After analyzing it some more (as I do), I started to find so much more meaning in those words. I could hear his excitement when describing what was coming up around the corner - even though he's probably made this trip dozens of times or more. His enthusiasm was contagious.
Life has started to reboot over the past several months. Although the COVID pandemic still lingers constantly in our minds, we're starting to learn to live with it. In my New Years Eve post last year, I listed the things I was looking forward to in 2021 and, fortunately, they're coming to fruition.
Last weekend, I graduated from the Audubon Community Naturalist training that I started a year ago. It was a fun and informative program, and a saving grace in a year otherwise filled with cancelled plans. Finishing the program was a good bookend for the last year. Now, I get to look forward. I'm not sure how I'll use the training, but I'm glad to have had the experience. Here we go.
In July of 2020, I learned that my exchange student Filip would not be able to have his experience in the US. It was devastating for me as I'm sure it was for him. I already have a trip planned to go to Norway next summer where I hope to finally meet him in person. I also have student trips planned to Ecuador and Washington, D.C. to make up for the other trips that were cancelled. God willing, I'll be exploring the world again in a few short months with students. Here we go.
In February, I got to talk to my current exchange student for the first time. When I saw Emil's profile, I could tell he would be a great student. It was a long five months waiting to meet him in person, so I can only imagine his level of anticipation. He arrived in Colorado just over a month ago and we've already been able to have some great adventures, including the train trip to Grand Junction. I'm continually impressed with how kind, mature, thoughtful, and positive he is. One of the reasons why I like having exchange students is that I get to experience so many "firsts" with them. I'm so used to all of our American idiosyncrasies that I don't realize how foreign they seem to the rest of the world. It forces me to slow down and appreciate the little things, too. Emil still has nine more months of fun and adventures and I'm so grateful that he was able to come this year.
It's said that a picture is worth a thousand words. If that's true, then I could now write an anthology.
I have been staying at my parents' house since this pandemic began and it has given me a chance to do something I have wanted (and needed) to do for years. I have been sorting through closets and drawers full of things from my childhood: clothes, photos, receipts, souvenirs, toys, videos, school work, and more. I've thrown away a few bags worth of things, but I've also kept some items that still have meaning. My collection of PEZ dispensers, my Jurassic Park Giga Pet, and my Walkman and cassette tape collection (Ace of Base was my favorite) bring back great memories of the wonderful decade that was the 90s. However, the things that bring me the most joy are the photos that remind me of the significant people in my life and the times I've had with them.
After going through my own things, I decided to tackle the cabinet full of family photos going back to about 1980. These photos were piled in boxes, many of which hadn't been looked at for years. I wanted to be able to see and share them so, after going through and sorting them (probably close to 10,000 photos), I scanned and uploaded 2,834 of them into Google Photos.
My sister and me with our grandparents
What I love about photographs is that, while they only capture a single moment in time, they remind me of a whole experience - an event, a trip, a person or group of people, a time period, or a feeling. That moment will never happen again in the exact same way, but the experience can be relived in your mind over an over and photographs make the memories so much more vivid. Some of the photos I found were of events that happened when I was too young to remember them, but seeing the photo makes me feel connected to the person or place. My mom's parents died when I was only five years old so I don't have many memories of them. Seeing photos of me with them, though, helps to fill in the fuzzy memories that I do have and I feel closer to my grandparents.
What's also great about photos is that they allow us to invite others into our lives and our experiences on a much deeper level. While that may seem obvious, it's so much more remarkable than we realize. Modern photography wasn't invented until the 1820s and those photographs were nothing compared to the ones I can now take with my DSLR (or my new iPhone for that matter). Before that, people could get some fairly realistic portraits painted, but they had no other way to record themselves in time besides their own fleeting memory. A photograph is just light being captured on film or a sensor in a certain way, but it has the powerful ability to bring back memories, inspire awe, and trigger strong emotions. That is one reason why I have always loved photography since I took my first class in high school.
My friend Brett shared this poem a couple of weeks ago and it made me think about some of the places I've been and the experiences I've had with others.
Child of Mine, come as you grow in youth you will learn the secret places the cave behind the waterfall the arms of the oak that hold you high the stars so near on a desert ledge ...the important places.
And, as with age, you choose your own way among the many faces of a busy world may you always remember the path that leads back. ...back to the important places. -Dad to Forest, 1986
Grand Canyon c. 1990
Photographs take us back to those important places. Looking through old photos has reminded me of many people, places, and experiences I've had. I found one photo of me at the Grand Canyon when I was only about five years old. I didn't even remember that I had been there but I found out that our family stopped on the way home from a trip to Arizona. Having just visited the Grand Canyon again in November, it made me think about how much different I am now and how many experiences I've had since I was that five year old with my Ninja Turtles t-shirt and my jean shorts. There is no way for me to remember every experience I've had in life, but photos can help me remember at least some.
While we deal with this virus pandemic, I don't know how soon we will all be able to visit our favorite places with our favorite people again. For now, the memories of both will have to do. Since most of us keep our photos on our phones and social media now, it's easy for us to go back, remember those times, and share with others. If you haven't looked for a while, scroll back in time through your photos on your phone (or your Facebook or Instagram page). I did that this week and it brought a smile to my face many times.
Here are some of my favorite memories and significant people from my life that I found in my photos:
Click here to see this whole album and see the photo descriptions.
I challenge you to find a photo or two of an important place, person, or event from your camera roll or social media and reconnect with somebody from that experience.
If there's a photo in the album I shared above that you were part of (or even if there isn't), I would love to hear a memory you have of that experience or another experience you and I had together in the comments.
I’ve never really been a huge fan of Willie Nelson, but his song seemed fitting for the title of this post.
I’m coming to the end of another road trip with Ramon; this time to South Dakota to see The Badlands (with the obligatory visit to Wall Drug), Mount Rushmore, the Crazy Horse Memorial, and tomorrow, Wind Cave National Park. Having an exchange student has been a great motivation for me to explore new places. Doing so has made me realize how much I enjoy these kind of adventures.
While driving down the Badlands Loop road yesterday on a beautiful, sunny February day, we had the realization of how few other people were around us and how we were almost the only ones to experience that place at that time. The sense of freedom that happens in the middle of these vast open spaces is difficult to know until you’ve experienced it for yourself. I’ve done a lot of reading in the past few years about how beneficial it is for us – for our souls – to spend time outside in nature. It’s true. Maybe more for some than others, but there’s certainly something about exploring creation that you cannot get elsewhere.
Visiting Crazy Horse and Mount Rushmore today, we were also lucky to be one of only a few visitor groups. At dusk, I was standing outside looking at the faces of four past presidents on the mountain and I realized that there was nobody else around. The air was perfectly still and there were no voices around me. It was a cool moment.
One thing that struck me about both memorials we visited was how much the men who designed them dedicated their lives to these projects knowing that they likely would not see them to their completion. They had vision, passion, and dedication and, because they were willing to look beyond their own lifetime, they were able to create these projects that have inspired millions and will continue to do so for many more generations. They had to trust that their children and their apprentices would see their work through to completion.
While eating a hamburger and fries at Wall Drug yesterday, I couldn’t help but notice the older gentleman at the table across from me with his worn out cowboy hat and shirt drinking his 5 cent coffee and talking to his buddies. I wondered what he has experienced and how different his life is than mine. To me, the suburban tourist, this was a novel experience. To him, it was just part of his Saturday routine.
I feel lucky to have the means to visit new places. It is good for my spirit to get away from the routine. I need to be able to drive down an open highway occasionally rather than be stuck in traffic on I-25. I can’t wait to get on the road again.
Remember that happiness is a way of travel – not a destination.
-Roy M. Goodman
October, which has been for several years my least favorite month, has just ended. I don’t exactly know why October is so difficult for me. There have been a few negative experiences in October that have contributed to it but, on a bigger scale, October represents for me the end of summer, cold weather, less daylight, and less travel. It signals the beginning of the long winter where restlessness and loneliness can so easily creep up. The leaves have fallen, the birds have gone to warmer climates, and it’s harder to spend time outside. For the next several months, I will be forced to slow down. My biggest travels will be wherever my mind takes me and, while not a bad thing, my wanderlust will likely emerge.
I’ve had the opportunity to experience several new places in the past couple of years: Barcelona in 2017, Costa Rica in 2018, and this year Belize, the Rogue River and Oregon Coast, and Hawaii. These trips have confirmed my suspicions that I feel at home in tropical, biologically diverse places. Nothing makes me more excited than to walk through a rainforest or along a sandy beach, camera in hand, looking for the next critter to show its face. Don’t get me wrong, Colorado has more than its fair share of beauty and adventure but, given the choice, I’d rather be exploring a rainforest or coral reef.
So, here we are. It’s November and, rather than packing for the next trip, I’m drinking coffee on the couch while the sun struggles to melt the snow from last week’s storm. I realize, though, that I like the comfort of my couch, too. Being home is nice. I’m able to relax and reflect and I don’t have to be anywhere. I can choose to be content, happy even, in this moment, knowing that the next adventure will come soon enough.
Ramon and I are taking a road trip to the Grand Canyon and a few other National Parks during the Thanksgiving break and I am excited for us to see new places and experience the American West. It’s fun having him with me this year and realizing that there is plenty of adventure in my own backyard.
Next summer, I have the opportunity to go back to Australia and to see New Zealand for the first time. I think that I first caught the travel bug when I got to visit Australia in high school and see a rainforest and coral reef for the first time. Before that, it almost seemed as if those things were imaginary. Maybe those who live on flat land feel the same about the mountains. I’ve seen the Grand Canyon once before, briefly, and I remember my disbelief with how large it is. I imagine I’ll have the same feeling again later this month.
Although the places I’ve visited have brought me much joy and amazement, I know that they are not the source of happiness. For me, travel and adventure brings life. For others, a lazy day at home is the best way to spend time. I’m learning to appreciate both. I know that it is difficult to experience happiness all of the time but, the more we can learn to appreciate the slow seasons in life, the more enjoyment I think we will find.
