Maybe that’s because we don’t do a whole lot of planning, maybe because the universe always seems to have a plan of its own. We have found that if we remain flexible things will usually work out pretty great, and more often than not, even better than expected. For example, we are currently in Ellsworth, Maine (near Acadia National Park) relaxing in a coffee shop on a rainy day. Sure we are a little bummed we can’t be outside in such a beautiful place but we are able to get some work done and give our bodies some much needed R&R. We have also discovered that a lot of areas are shut down for the season, this is very strange to us because the fall foliage is still in full swing. We haven’t been able to find any open campsites so we are sleeping in the Walmart parking lot (not as bad as it sounds). So maybe a little more planning may have been good in this case :]. But hey life’s all about balance right?
So maybe things aren’t going quite as planned, but we can still enjoy what we are doing in this exact moment. No one can control the weather, no one can control what their future destination will be like. However, we can all choose to make the best of our current situations, rain and all. We learned this the hard way after rushing off to Maine when we should have been relishing in the epic beauty of the Adirondack mountains. If you’re enjoying a place, a conversation, a meal, don’t be in such a hurry to get to move on. The future is inevitable.
It made me incredibly happy that my mother, Julie Royer, spontaneously joined us in the Finger Lakes of New York. We gave her a last minute call on a Friday to see if she would join us for the weekend. A little hesitant at first she declined. An hour later she called and said she was packed and about to depart for her 4.5 hour drive and would meet us for dinner. We had a great weekend tasting wines, eating amazing meals, watching our beloved Ohio teams kick ass, and taking some gorgeous hikes. Thanks mom!
Walking a pier at the Finger Lakes and picking grapes on our hike. Do not fret, the grape monster pictured right was harmless… besides the stench.
We’ve learned a lot in the short time that we’ve been on the road but Kira shows us we have a long way to go. Yes she’s a dog and doesn’t really have a choice in where we end up, but her unwavering excitement and apparent happiness for each and every place serves as a constant reminder for how we should live out our trip. Do we pause and savor each precious moment?
