"I can't remember all the times I tried to tell myself to hold on to these moments as they pass.........." Adam F. Duritz of the Counting Crows - Recovering the Satellites - "A Long December"
Yep, ole Jake says it all with his very simple slogan. I love the Life Is Good company and its creators. Their success story of how they lived in their van, selling T-shirts, the concept, the idea, the truth, the message so basic yet we all take it for granted each and everyday of our lives; that "Life Is Good". We run to and from work each day, then rush to complete errands so that we can cross them off our lists, then we rush to shuttle the kids to and from their many activities, then we rush home to make the dinner that everyone will eat in separate rooms, finally collapsing at the end of the day in front of the TV, in front of the computer to do more work, or in bed with a book to read a few pages B4 we fall into a hectic and restless sleep. As Americans, we are rushed, harried, worried, stressed out, overwhelmed, bombarded with negative and terrible images and stories on the news, yet we call what we are doing living. It's not. Many are simply existing. Most of us don't even BREATHE correctly if you can believe that.
I recently returned from a wonderful vacation with my family, touring the Southwest -Arches National Park, Canyonlands National Park , the Grand Canyon, Sedona, , Four Corners, Mesa Verde, etc. Along the way we drove thru many desolate areas and Native American reservations. To see how this very poor and remote portion of the country lives was very sobering for me, albeit very beautiful at the same time. What these people lack in material riches is made up tenfold by the physical beauty and history they are surrounded with. Now, I live in Colorado, which granted, is up there on the list of beautiful places. I love where I live 2B sure, but the Hopi, the Navajo, the Apache, well their scenery ain't just whistlin' Dixie Bubba. Monument Valley and Canyon de Chelly to name just two will truly make your mouth hang open. "WOW" was all I could say most of the time, and just shake my head in awe and yet shame at the same time about how our government still causes these tribes to live, scratching out an existence on land that will barely grow anything, and forget about job opportunities - there aren't any besides fast food, gas stations, or tourist stands, hawking their jewelry and rugs.
Our whirlwind tour had us staying in numerous campgrounds and hotels along the way, and as we traveled I observed my fellow mankind. At our Moab, Utah stop alone there were over ten rental RV's at our campground that contained foreigners from Germany, Japan, Italy, France, and Great Britain. I wondered as I went for my nightly stroll what they thought of our fine country and how camping might be different or the same where they were from. Even in other languages and cultures, I noticed that people have the same amount of trouble getting their kids out of bed, feeding them, packing up, and getting on the road as we do. THAT seems universal. In Williams, Arizona, near the Grand Canyon, I chuckled to myself one night as I walked to the bathroom, observing people sitting outside surrounded by Mother Nature, the glow of their TV's and laptops lighting up their faces in a macabre, ghostly light. Campers in the good ole days used to sit around the glow of campfires and tell stories while making S'mores then head off to beddy bye in a leaky tent; now everyone brings with them the very things we're supposed 2B getting away from. You should see some of these "motor coaches" as they call them now (the term RV is OUT, my friend).
In Holbrook, AZ late one night as we were sitting on the porch of our modest camping cabin, a motor coach pulls up to an empty spot for the night. I thought a space ship was landing. This thing had more hydraulics on it than the Space Shuttle. I don't think the guy even had to get out to hook anything up, I think it did it all by itself and then they just crawled in the back and went to bed. I shook my head; some people just don't get it. That's not CAMPING. Camping is sleeping all together in one room on lumpy mattresses with no air conditioning. Camping is listening to my daughters alternately talk in their sleep or fall out of the bunk beds, thereby ensuring I got no sleep. Camping is getting up in the middle of the night and having to walk more than a block to go to the bathroom, but looking up and seeing a zillion stars in the still, dead of night. Camping is seeing my older daughter's face light up as some students from France speak to her and she can actually talk back to them in their native language for the first time and getting a big kick out of it. Camping is talking and singing and laughing and fighting and driving 40 miles in the wrong direction because we don't have a map of Arizona with us, then driving 40 miles back to the road we were supposed to turn on, all because we were looking at a bale of hay in the back of somebody's hatchback and laughing and missed our turn. Camping is making pit stops in the grossest of places or peeing outside. Camping is getting excited at what junk food snacks we'll find at the next gas station complex, or what treasures we'll find at the dollar store that every town we went to seemed to have. Camping is finding new ways to be with each other that you don't normally get to experience while seeing some of the most mind-blowing things out of your window each day that you may never see again. Even with all of the creature comforts our home provides us with everyday, I never wanted to come home. I'd trade it all to live like this 24/7........................or, at least for 2 weeks every year.
So cherish these moments. When you return home from vacation, don't forget what you went for in the first place. Life IS good, but it is also short. Don't worry. Be happy. Relax. Chill out. Don't sweat the small stuff. Slow down. And learn how to breathe right, would you?
