My soul is feeling the peace of getting back to my happy place. Just now, settling in to my new environment, just as the frost is settling into the ground.
Leaving family and friends is always difficult. Leaving my folks, who aren't getting any younger is the most difficult of all. Not knowing if I'll see them again before they depart this earth. I expressed my love for them and told them I'd be back for the holidays, part of my heart was left with them.
My children and grand children know that I come and go like the wind. They know how much I love them and miss them but they also know that I need to be in the Great Land to experience the joy that the wild outdoors brings to my soul. I'll bring back stories and rocks, lots of photos and a ton of love when I go back east.
My friends don't know what to think of me, some say I'm totally crazy, some think I'm adventurous and some wonder if I'll leave one of these times and never return. Some ask what my plans are.......all I can say is, I just don't know! I'm not a planner per say, I have no idea what I'll have for lunch or dinner, never mind what I'll be doing tomorrow, next week or next year. I take each day as it comes. They ask, "What about your retirement?" WHAT??? I'm living an awesome life, and I wonder, retire from what? You only get one life and I don't want to grow old and say, golly, I wish I had done this, or traveled there. I'm living and enjoying new experiences, everyday! I never know what day it is, or what time it is, nor, do I care.
I learned to live without"things", they are not important. There's so much more to life and living, and with fewer belongings, there's a sense of freedom to come and go. There are so many interesting people to meet and share stories with. That's one of the reasons I love it here in Alaska, people enjoy life everyday. They are not caught up in what they own or worrying how they'll pay for things. Yesterday, I met a woman from Juneau, originally from Pennsylvania, who moved here in 1995 with her teenage daughter, who by the way, thought she was nuts! An attorney, she started mushing dogs in 1999 and has decided to try racing in the Iditarod. She ferried her truck, dogs, snow machine and four wheeler and is spending the winter in the mountains, alone, training for the last great race. She's 58 yrs old, put her practice aside and is living life. Can you imagine? I wish her well.
Hopefully, in this quiet place with stunning surroundings I'll be able to put my thoughts to paper. If I can inspire one person to seek their dreams, my ramblings will not be in vane.
