A short time ago my friend Kim, from So-Many-Places, wrote a beautiful piece on what she was grateful for and invited others to share their thoughts. In this time of negative news, it is more important than ever to remember that the majority of us have many, many things to be grateful for every single day. This weekend, Jim was enjoying a night away on a guys camping trip and I found myself home alone for the first time in a long time and thought about all of the many things I’m grateful for.
The Sphinx and pyramids of Cairo. Admittedly, not my favorite spot in Egypt, it was nonetheless an impressive sight. We were constantly in awe of the work done by human hands thousands of year prior. Egypt has seen some turmoil in recent years, but the country is safe and the people need tourist dollars. Go, now, and visit this iconic landmark for yourself.
“Your dream is not big enough if it doesn’t scare you”
FEAR. We all experience it, whether it be the everyday fear of spiders or a debilitating fear of the dark. I’m sure we all just as often find our actions paralyzed by our fears. Fear of commitment. Fear of death. Fear of being along. Fear of failure. Fear of Success.
Torre DeRoche wrote a book about her fear, “Love, with a Chance of Drowning”, and is encouraging the rest of us to face our fears by recording them for all to see and even throwing some competitive spirit into it with a contest. Reading some of the other entries, I started to think about what really scares me to my bones. My first immediate thought was losing Jim. I realize the loss of a spouse is a bit of a pat answer to some but we are truly soul mates. We’ve been together more years than we have lived apart. We are nearly inseparable; commuting together, living together, and for our round-the-world spending 24/7 together for 14 months. The mere though of losing him brings me to my knees, breathless, and unable to comprehend how I could go on.
STOP! I think I can get this one! Jim slammed on the brakes as we rounded the bend, startled by my outburst. I leaped from the van, camera in hand, in what proved to be yet another failed attempt to photograph a sleeping baby lamb.
New Zealand is full of sheep. The commonly heard phrase “more sheep than people” is not exaggerated. And yet, in nearly 3 weeks of criss-crossing the country I had been unable to capture one of those elusive creatures on film in the pose I had envisioned in my head. We’d seen thousands, eaten several, and yet I had not yet captured the shot of my dreams.
Although I must admit Australia was not our favorite country to travel in, they have got a lot of kick ass cool animals! Here a cuddly, nearly catatonic, Koala bear and baby!
Mist swirled above the lake, alternately framing and shrouding the fisherman’s boat. It was early morning at Timothy Lake, and the sun was trying to break through, highlighting Mt. Hood in the distance.
Among the exotic and tasty food stalls of the markets of Saigon, one of my favorite sights was of these colorful tea cups and saucers.
I started to step into the street, my foot hovering in the air as my knees shook with fright. Heat, humidity, and exhaust fumes engulfed me as the air literally shook around me from what appeared to be thousands of vehicles swirling on all sides of the round-about.
It had been three days since we had arrived in Saigon, officially now Ho Chi Minh City, and we were trapped halfway across an eight lane street. Motor scooters, taxis, auto rickshaws, human powered rickshaws, all vying for first place in the ever crazed race around the streets of the city.
Luang Prabang, Laos as so many things going for it and it’s popularity is justified. But, in spite of the major sights, we most enjoyed the random moments of beauty around each corner.
As much as we love an unexpected adventure, we learned long ago that if we want to do anything other than pirate camping over a major holiday weekend here in the Pacific Northwest we need to plan ahead. Months ahead. And yet, we didn’t.
