I wish I had more words that dance and tantalize and rip your imagination into unspeakable joy. But all I have are stories, simple and true, embellished with my own little twists. It feels inadequate to tell so great happenings in letters and punctuation. Oh how I love exclamation points! The sheer delight never really makes it to the paper. It dangles in my mind long after the typing is done.
I know that you will add your own flavor and spice to what you read and hopefully the message you receive will create a spark of something novel, a door waiting to be opened, a seed ready to be planted, a new gift to share. Go for it! Be inspired and live with exclamation points!
I wish I had the vocabularies of Maya Angelou, Anne Lamott, Sanders Lamont or Jordan Hollinger. Their words tickle my brain and constantly have me asking for more.
I write because you have asked me to share the adventures , so here we go!
Daryl has a practice that I try to emulate. When he sees people he whispers in his soul, his heart or under his breath “child of God.” In this way, it helps him frame that person as precious. We practiced it at breakfast when the young man did an entire business transaction, very loudly on his phone, while I was trying to eat my delicious homemade waffle. Daryl whispers” child of God,” and I smile. “He’s eeking out a living, I guess.” Hope it goes well and we are blessed.
If you know anything about the drive from Fresno to Needles you know that it is a world of contrasts. One minute you are among the lush fields of fruit trees where migrant workers are tending to irrigation lines, trimming and pesticides, while the bees are doing their job to ensure those delicious fruits arrive in our grocery carts; and the next minute red and black mountains with granite statues poke out like aliens in a foreign land.
Miles and miles with almost no vegetation except for the occasional Joshua tree make me feel as if I’ve landed on another planet. Magnificent, and it’s hard to comprehend the vastness of it. Our little 2012 Scion XB with over 213000 miles on it purred along beautifully.
It’s grand to be sure, but at my age and a cup of coffee and eight ounces of water later, a bathroom is a must. Now I’m probably not telling you anything new, but California is woefully lacking in rest areas with bathrooms. As a matter of fact there are two on the 100 mile stretch of our road but both were closed. One was blocked off with cones and tapes. The second one was nonexistent. A sign said “under construction” but the only thing there was flattened black dirt with a small deserted tractor in the middle of it. I imagine the contractor said, I’m done with this and took off sixty miles down the road to sip a nice cold beer at the only pub in town.
So we began to look for a tree, well a sage bush actually, anything that would provide an itty bitty amount of privacy. Suddenly, I said to Daryl, “look there’s a visitor center sign” and quickly across three lanes of traffic, I headed to Boron.
“We are in luck,” I said, “a visitor center.” It looked desolate but we followed the signs to the visitor center which led us to the boron plant, yes, that’s right, the place where borax is produced. Not sure how interested we were in learning about borax, but our bladders kept us going. Suddenly, almost at the gate, the sign says “visitor center closed.” Okay so now the bushes are looking pretty inviting. We turn around and head back to the highway scanning for a BIG bush. The WEE gods have delivered I yell!
Out of nowhere we suddenly came upon a port a potty by the side of the road. “Okay Daryl,” I say, “unless it has a snake in it, I’m using it.” You are not going to believe this, it was clean, had toilet paper and didn't even stink! Outside was a stand with water, hand soap that smelled like citrus, and paper towels! How in heaven’s name did it get here? I don’t know but it saved me! Miracle, I say, an absolute miracle!
It’s thrilling to travel when the little things become joys.
Did you know you can now order a McDonald’s hamburger well done? I kid you not! I’m not sure what it will be when it is cooked to oblivion but friends you have a choice! I did not press that button on the kiosk and my burger still came out a little thicker than a piece of paper, but not much!
Our stop for lunch at McDonald’s reminding us again of my sermon on Sunday about forgiveness. Sitting near to us was a family of five, twin boys around four years old, a mother breast feeding an infant and a very young looking father trying to reign in those boys. Of course they were not going to sit in chairs, they were going to use them like wild horses and the stroller like some sort of galactic carriage with it screeching and flying into the table. Daryl and I looked at each other, eyebrows raised. “Children of God,” Daryl says and we both start laughing. I began to pray for those parents and at the energy bursting in those little bodies. God help them in their car ride I prayed. They are going to need it. Our smiles and body posture can show welcome and acceptance. It’s a good practice!
Old Route 66 did not disappoint and we found ourselves in a charming Best Western with incredible evening views. “You will want to eat at the Wagon Wheel,” the concierge said. “It’s like a Cracker Barrel only local and better.” It did not disappoint. Sitting among wagon wheel lights, guns, cigarettes and beer ads; we devoured our home cooked meals and listened to the light laughter around us. The waitress occasionally hugged the clients and we left feeling like we were back in the 70’s.
Much to our surprise and the 80 degree temperature we discovered a glorious pool and hot tub at this little cheap hotel that was immaculate and divine. We had it to ourselves and it was the perfect ending to a grand day.
Yes the driving is long but oh how glorious are the joys of my travels! Luv to you all with flip flops on my feet and my white hair blowing in the wind!
