Thirty Weeks

Today marks 30 weeks that we've been on the road, 210 days since we drove away from our hometown of 17 years into an uncertain but exciting future. What a long, strange trip it's been, to quote a line from  the great Grateful Dead song, Truckin'.  :-)

We are here in Taos with our son and daughter-in-law as the winds and horizontal rains whip across the Taos mesa and thunderstorms roll across northern New Mexico. "The Excellent Adventure" has been an excellent adventure indeed, and we look forward to looking back at the days, weeks and months with continued awe at all that we've seen and done, and all of the interesting people that we've met along the way, some of whom we'll no doubt keep in touch with.

Here's a photo of two candlelit treats that Rene and Bevin surprised us with tonight as a 30-week anniversary surprise (accompanied by other sweet and thoughtful gifts):

Once we're settled into our little rental casita in Santa Fe, it will be time for us to do some looking back, reflecting on this leg of our journey and what it all means. We've learned a lot about ourselves and each other, about America, and about what life on the road can really be. It's an exciting time in our relationship with one another and our individual selves, and the letting go process that preceded our disembarkation from Amherst is still reverberating on many levels.

Our future out here in the West is still unwritten, but we both feel that we've taken the reins of our lives and launched a journey that doesn't simply end when the RV is parked. We see our time in Santa Fe---however short or long it turns out to be---as the second leg of the adventure, and there's no telling how the third leg will manifest itself!

Tomorrow we return to Las Vegas (New Mexico) for a reunion with our good friends whose horses we cared for back in March. On Sunday, we'll be at the Hummingbird Community in Mora, New Mexico for the joyous arrival of our friends Mandy and Ryan who have been bicycling around the country visiting 100 intentional communities ( ! ) and have chosen Hummingbird as their new home. Mandy and Ryan are making a film about their journey, and their website is well worth a visit.

Our arrival to Santa Fe will not necessarily have the fanfare of Mandy and Ryan's arrival to Mora, but a happy soundtrack will be playing in our heads as we create a new home for ourselves at The Commons on the Alameda.