We need a detox.
That simple fact is where the idea of a cross country road trip was born. We were planning for what life would look like on the “other side,” (aka normal society) and we decided we’d go crazy if we tried to jump right back into life before the Corps. We decided the perfect transition would be to just get out there, hit the open road, and drive. We were already doing online school, and with the help of the handy dandy Post 911 GI Bill we can continue to advance our education, and mark American destinations off our bucket list. We both love road tripping and exploring new cities, so it seemed like a practical goal. At our wedding ceremonies, (yes two, whew talk about a headache! Two ceremonies is an ambitious way to go, and while ours were beautiful, I don’t know if I would ever recommend that to anyone) we tried something a little non-traditional. Since we already had a home and we knew that we’d be moving at the end of the year, we decided to ask for donations to our road trip as wedding gifts. It was really great to have all our wedding guests be a part of our trip and their contributions are going to be a huge help. It has been really fulfilling to follow through with a dream, and watch our road trip come to life.
Anyways, back to the dream. God willing, we plan to visit all 50 states, spend a couple months living with just the supplies in our car, and traveling where the road takes us. Don’t worry we haven’t gone total hippies. (Actually, one of the main reasons we created a blog and instagram is to mitigate the temptation of going totally off the grid) We do have some sort of rough plan of a route we plan to take. But, we tried to make it really broad (on purpose) so that we could save PLENTY of room for the unexpected. The rough draft of our plan is to hit New England and as many Northern states as we can (without feeling rushed) before the big snows come in. As beautiful as snow is, it’s hard to truly get an original feel for a town when it’s completely drenched in snow. Plus we don’t want to get snowed in. So in hopes of keeping the journey moving we will hit the freezing states before Thanksgiving. Which works out perfectly so our Thanksgiving (and Daniel’s birthday) can be spent with Daniel’s side of the family. Post Thanksgiving we plan to venture the middle states and make it back to the East Coast to spend Christmas (and McKayla’s birthday) with McKayla’s side of the family. Post Chirstmas, it’s hopefully smooth sailing hitting all the southern states and completely our quest. Simply put, there’s our little plan!
Now for our trip goals. Both being sergeants in the Marine Corps, puts a certain wear and tear on your body, mind, and soul. The Marine Corps transforms you. No matter how much you try to fight it, refuse to accept it, or do not notice it, it changes a person. Some ways bad, but honestly, when you get past the rough edges, the Corps taught us a multitude of very valuable qualities. Time management, work ethic, adaptability, endurance, loyalty, and leadership are skills that get extremely amplified by serving. But, you do run on timelines, tight schedules, always being 15 minutes prior to 15 minutes, formations, and standing by to stand by. This type of organized living almost brain washes you and mutes your spontaneous spirit. Breaking this military mindset and back into normal society is going to be a hecking journey. Learning to relax, growing closer to God, be patient with each other, trying to filter our words, and minimize pointless stress are some of our main goals of this detox journey. In the true detox spirit,
we are trying to live as minimally as possible. So we sold almost all of our belongings, and got rid of 75% of our clothes (that was the hardest part!) The idea is the less crap we haul around with us the less distractions we will have from experiencing life and the beauty around us. Both being nostalgic people it was hard to let go of some of our prize possessions, but there definitely is freedom in letting go of crap you don’t need. Trust me, it’s bitter-sweet, but there is growth in change.
So what’s next? Yes, eventually we plan on settling down somewhere. But the nice thing about downsizing our belongings is we can continue to keep up a minimalist lifestyle. In today’s world, it seems like you need so much stuff to survive and live comfortably. We are hoping to learn a lot about ourselves, as well as, what our true necessities are. I heard it said once, “I would rather own very little and see the world, than own the world and see very little.” Basically our journey (goals, plans, and dreams) can all be summarized as being present. Just being fully present wherever that might be. A verse we have been studying, in order to really focus on living each day to its fullest is: Matthew 6:34. “Do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself. Each day has enough troubles of its own.”
