landscape

zen of an american road trip /  by admin

©2011 gary garbett.com

Taking a road trip is one of my favorite things in the world. I'm sure it harkens back to the days of my childhood when my family would pack up the station wagon and journey through America. With my father's career as a Navel Officer, we did our share of long distance road travels every couple of years, in addition to our countless summer vacations of camping. I have vivid memories of viewing the country from the backseat of Dad's authentic Detroit made automobiles, especially his 1968 turquoise Gran Torino. With the windows rolled down and the wind whipping in a little faster than the posted highway speed, it was spectacular.

We made the 4000 mile plus drive across the entire United States from coast to coast at least four times, including a 1300 mile jaunt along the Alaska Highway, back when it was just a two-lane gravel and dirt road and long before there was ever a thought of paving it. We reached our destination late that summer in Anchorage searching for the ferry departure to Kodiak and for a carwash to remove the heavy coating of red clay covering Dad's Ford.

Seeing America from the road has always been a Zen like experience for me. I find a centering peace in the miles of memory, beauty, and the numerous hand painted signs for Mom and Pop type stores that read "just ahead".

a thankful reflection /  by admin

Full Moon Claytor
©2011 gary garbett.com

There was solemnness and a revival upon departing from my vacation yesterday morning. My time away was beyond healthy and a well needed refueling for my soul. It wasn't something I jotted down on my to-do list while I was away. It just happened. Seemed almost ironic with the decade commemoration of 9/11 being played out around our country and the world.

Perhaps my deciding to take the long way home was an attempt to extend my vacation a bit, but traveling along the Blue Ridge Parkway with the windows down and the roof open was more about reflection rather than delaying my return to the real world. It was a time of emotion and celebration as I thought of the day that changed so many lives ten years earlier and on a day that looked so similar to the one I was experiencing. The air was fresh. The sky blue, and the sun warmed my skin with its touch. I drove through the beautiful panoramas, stopping from time to time just to live in the moment, knowing I have a lot to be thankful for.

The end of my vacation drive found me in the parking lot of our church. I was thirty minutes late for the 5PM dedication memorial service for 9/11. I walked in with my hair a mess, wearing shorts, and my skin still warm from the hours of sunshine. Those things were trivial and just didn't matter. I listened and was touched by the stories I heard of those retelling their personal accounts from a morning ten years earlier.

I'm not sure I could have scripted this past week any better. It renewed me, gave me hope, and opened my eyes. I believe in a lot of things ...some of which even more today than I did seven days ago.

casting days /  by admin

©2011 gary garbett.com

Fishing holes and calendar days are incredibly similar. Despite having a plan for either, the events of the experience are never really certain. There have been days where I exceeded my daily limit before 9AM. Others weren't as rewarding and I've even lost my bobber on some. The splendor of days is that I can always cast my line again tomorrow.