A Cross-Country Road Trip

I’m writing to you from Roswell, New Mexico.  This is my fifth day of driving & I have one more day on the road before I get to spend the night in one place for more than one night.  It’s been quite a trip!

Why have I been on the road for so long?  Well, I was recruited to help my daughter move from Orlando, FL to Albuquerque, NM.  Okay, I’ll admit I volunteered.  This is her first major move after graduating from college and I couldn’t make her do this move all on her own.  So, I volunteered to help drive her belongings across the country.

We’ve been driving 7 or 8 hours each of the last few days & then crashing in a hotel for the evening before we do it all over again the next day.

This trip has been such a great reminder to go with the flow and live in the moment.  When we missed a turn, then, well, it meant that we were going to take just a slightly different route.  When the GPS took me to the wrong place & my hotel was nowhere to be seen, then it meant I had to pull up my own map & figure it out on my own.

Living in the moment and going with the flow has actually been quite pleasant over the past week.  This has meant that I wasn’t living in the future or living in the past.  I very much have needed to live in the moment in order to get to my hotel for the night.  I knew that if I did that, then the next day would take care of itself.  I also knew that once I finished the day, I didn’t need to think about the part of the trip that occurred the day before.

I’ve been living in the moment as I watch traffic all around me.  I’ve also been living in the moment as I crash at the end of the day and enjoy a well earned dinner and a good night of sleep.

During this trip, I’ve been reminded that it’s okay to be frustrated, tired, joyful, irritable, sad, happy and all of the other emotions that have popped up on this road trip.  I’ve tried to acknowledge them and experience them rather than push them away.  That’s part of living in the moment as well.

A trip like this gives me lots of time to think and feel.  Sometimes those feelings are uncomfortable but when I acknowledge them in the moment that discomfort passes and is replaced with something else.  And, when those feelings are comfortable, then it’s time to acknowledge them and open space for whatever is going to be in the next moment as well.

I might be an empty nester most of the time, but my kids are keeping me busy in August.  This month I’m moving both of my kids to new homes.  Helping my daughter move to New Mexico has felt like the natural progression in my life as a parent.  In a couple of weeks, I’ll do the same with my son.  When I do move him to Daytona Beach for his first year of college, I’m sure that I”ll be living in the moment again and experiencing all sorts of feelings.

I try not to confine living in the moment to just those big, eventful times of life.  Rather, living in the moment is even more precious when I’m in between those big events.  Awareness of the present moment lets me accept what’s happening right now and brings me to the next choices in my life.  So, whether big or small moments, living in the moment connects me in a closer way to what’s happening right here, right now.

I’m glad that I’ve helped my daughter on this move and I can’t wait to see how she blossoms in this next part of her life.  I’m sure I”ll feel the same way about my son in a few weeks.  When both of these moves are done, then I’ll go back to being a full-time empty nester.

I’ve just published my first e-book.  It gives you tips and tricks to have happier, healthier feet.  If you’d like to check it out, then click here.  The exercises & stretches can be done just about anywhere, even when on a cross-country road trip!