PLANES, TRAINS, AND AUTOMOBILES
And maybe not the romantic travel of my imagination...
This morning, the time changed. They call it daylight savings time, which never made sense to me—especially this morning—because it was still dark outside when my alarm went off.
The birds have been chirping wildly. I think they’re confused too. The good news is that our phones and smart clocks “spring” forward an hour for us, so we won’t be late, which wasn’t always the case. When our kids were young, I can remember a few stressful mornings trying to get out the door on time when we forgot to change the clocks the night before.
For years, spring also meant graduation season. We’ve celebrated graduation from kindergarten, elementary school, middle school, high school, and college. Both of our kids graduated from college, but their high school graduations stick in my memory as the most significant. Not because of the parties we had, but because there was such a feeling of excitement for the future.
I’ve read the commencement address that Steve Jobs gave in 2005 several times. That’s the year our son graduated from high school. Jobs said, “You’ve got to find what you love. If you haven’t found it yet, keep looking. Don’t settle.” After graduation, our son began his love for international travel. His graduation gift was an airline ticket to Europe, where he set off for six weeks, equipped with a Eurail pass and a backpack. I’ve often felt guilty that we didn’t allow our daughter to take a trip to Europe when she graduated from high school. And to be honest, I’m not sure whether we didn’t allow it, or if we didn’t encourage it. She was very focused on her horses and was driven to get accepted into pharmacy school.
The official day of spring doesn’t happen for a couple of weeks, and graduations are a thing of the past in our house, but I’m already feeling energized. I’m motivated because this year, I’m doing some traveling of my own! For years, I’ve glamorized what my trips would be like. I’ve envisioned myself riding a Vespa through the streets of Rome like Audrey Hepburn and Gregory Peck did in the movie Roman Holiday. I’ve imagined luxuriating on the opulent Orient Express and dressing for dinner in the fine dining car. My fantasy ride on the train is minus the murder, of course, but it does include Hermes scarves and shimmering evening gowns.
The trip I am actually taking is a mission trip to Namibia, on the west coast of southern Africa. I’m joining some longtime (and travel-experienced) friends to build a playground for children and provide some much-needed respite and fellowship for their caregivers. I don’t suppose I’ll be needing a Hermes scarf or shimmery evening gowns … perhaps a pair of boots and a safari hat instead.
I’ve traveled enough over the years to know that real travel is not like my fantasy trips. In fact, airline travel has changed a lot over those years. In my experience, flying in a plane today is more similar to riding in a bus. Quite different from the early years of Pan American Airlines. Back then, passengers dressed in fine clothes, every seat had ample leg room and meals were served on real China plates with silverware.
So, I may not be flying first class or boarding the Orient Express, but this trip is definitely part of my expeditionvision. I am excited to make new memories that are sure to include trains, planes, and automobiles.
