Anticipating the Great Wander

“When we travel, we actually take three trips. There’s the first trip of preparation and anticipation, packing and daydreaming. There’s the trip you’re actually on. And then, there’s the trip you remember. “The key is to try to keep all three as separate as possible,” he says. “The key is to be present wherever you are right now.” We depart in less than a week for a 2 month sojourn through Canada and the US taking in as many awe inspiring locations as possible, yet another ritual of renewal. To be honest, I hate this part. The packing. The planning. The preparing. As a former concierge, planning is instilled as a daily habit, I do it routinely without thinking about it. I don’t enjoy planning in bulk - feels like work, only in this case unpaid. I love setting out and seeing where the road leads, who I’ll meet a long the way, making discoveries, and plotting my map with a waypoint of “you are here.” No expectations leads to no let downs. I could live eternally in the middle stage, a forever transient on the go who’s home is wherever she is. Packing is a whole other thing, usually we bring too much. I end up shedding and giving things away the further I go. This trip feels different in a way. I have no friends, connections, community or personal ties where we’re heading, it’s all unknown. What we’ll find is to be determined. the best adventures are usually the ones you can’t predict. We’ll have to put the keys in the ignition and the camper in drive to find out. “You are here” is a great place to begin any voyage 🗺️📍. Can’t wait to fast fwd to “trip 2”