thoughts on traveling west

Tomorrow I go back to work, ending my month long vacation.  Will this be the last time I ever have that much time to travel?  If I could do it over, would I do it differently?  Was it a success?  No matter how many times I visualize the future or prepare for different outcomes, life never turns out very predictable for me.  During college I never could have predicted I would now be into my third year as an educator at a science museum, running a planetarium or performing shows in a laboratory coat at schools around the state.  I also couldn't predict I would find a woman like Emily, for she inspires me and loves me like no other.  When I decided to take the road trip with her I was sacrificing other opportunities.  I chose to miss participating as an artist-in-residence at the Sweet Chariot Music & Arts Festival.  I also gave up volunteering to photograph Syracuse's Festival of Races.  Lastly, I had a good chance at spending a month in Pennsylvania at an art residency with my friend and fellow artist Kristen Egan.  I chose the road trip because I wanted to visit Emily in Canada and share in some of her life out there.  I wanted to see the stars and the clouds from the prairie and the West.  I also wanted to travel to the Rockies, because I've grown up with stories from my parents of the adventurous road trips they took in their twenties to Colorado and California.  I wanted to get lots of new photographs and to have my own adventure with Emily.  So was it worth it?  Of course.

We couldn't predict that their would be gray skies and rain almost everyday of our trip, but even if we had I would have gone anyway.  We may not have had much of an opportunity to see the stars or photographic clouds, but when we did they were beautiful.  And maybe that is one of the lessons nature teaches us.  I have to remind myself sometimes that nature is not like ordering fast food.  You often have to wait for great views or wildlife, which is part of what makes it so sweet when they do appear.  The two nights Emily and I were able to see the stars were the two most romantic nights of the trip.  The first evening we lay on our backs against the hillside of an ancient river valley and held deep conversation while watching the turning of the stars, moon, and planets.  At our next opportunity we used her bird telescope to look at the sky.  It was her first time seeing the Moon in such detail and she was spellbound by its features.  I stopped few times to photograph clouds, but twice I was given a real show.  When we stopped to go to a movie theater somehere in Ontario, I was able to photograph mammatus clouds from the parking lot.  These are a relatively unusual and fantastic cloud formations.

The land and people we saw were varied and wonderful.  Driving and hiking through the Rockies was breathtakingly beautiful, but the rolling hills of the prairie and the autumn trees and ponds of Canada's shield were also impressive and joy inspiring.  The ranchers in Saskatchewan, with there wonderfully thick accents and prairie oysters, were welcoming and good people.  Meeting them was one of my favorite parts of the trip. We also met with the hospitality of a generous Mennonite couple in Alberta, and stayed at a bed and breakfast and hostel run by other nice couples on our journey.  We met many Blackfeet/Blackfoot people in Montana and Alberta.  I met with Emily's graduate student friends and her advisor, and in Ottawa we encountered a great multi-cultural mix.  Ottawa not only had many French speakers, it also had enough pubs and old brick buildings to convince you that you where somewhere in Europe.

Emily and I saw a lot on our adventure.  There was a variety of cities, towns, museums and truckstop restaurants, as well as a variety of natural settings.  We saw many different animals, and almost all of these encounters were very close and special.  A wild goat got so close I could almost touch her (which was actually pretty scary and I had to jump into the van), and a wild pika ran right through Emily's legs.  We also watched some beautiful sunsets, took sips of water from cold glacier streams, and shared in awe and wonder at the natural beauty of our continent.  I don't know if we will get another chance like we had, but the experience taught me that I really want to see more of this continent and the world.  It also reminded me to be thankful for both the opportunity I had and for the gift of creation itself.  In order to honor this gift, and because I love it in NY in the fall, I will try not to waste this season indoors.  This is my favorite season of year, and though I can't predict the future I am open for whatever this fall should bring.