It's been an adventurous month crossing the USA. I have a few minutes while I await a dental exam (another one) to begin putting my thoughts into words here. To my dismay, a cavity that I had filled two months ago is very sore and so I wait for a seat in my least favorite type of chair....
On a lighter note, it's been a beautiful trek across America, and just so our Canadian and global friends know: America is the same place it has been for a very long time. It's not suddenly evil. The people are generally kind and friendly - just like in Canada. The land is gorgeous and the wildlife is abundant - just like in Canada. Everyone is doing the best they can. Occasionally, we have spotted red, white and blue billboards, signs and bumper stickers saying "TRUMP: Making America Great Again". In my humble opinion, America IS great, but it has nothing to do with the politics. It's simply another incredible place on this earth, and the abundance of amazing human beings is what makes it greatest.
When we approached the border between southern Alberta and Montana, the guard looked at my American passport and said "welcome home". I smiled and said thank you, but also felt a bit funny because I haven't considered the USA to be my home in over a decade.
We made our way south to Yellowstone National Park in Wyoming. The geysers were so beautiful and bizarre. It was tricky to capture the true essence of their steamy mystery in photos.
Herds of bison grazed the foothills and elk and moose could be seen in the fields and forests.
Heading into eastern Wyoming, we took a detour when we saw a sign that said "wild horse scenic tour". We drove for nearly two hours through the dry badlands on a high plateau overlooking prehistoric canyons with layers of colored rock shelves exposed from centuries of erosion. The roadside markers described what was believed to be a prehistoric ocean millions of years ago. Also we never saw a single wild horse...so that was a bummer. We had fun anyway!
We had to do a last minute route change, due to an avalanche closure of a Rocky Mountain pass through northern Colorado. Instead, we went a bit south through Denver. As soon as we drove into the downtown area, marijuana was in the air. We parked and found a hip Thai bistro and has a great chat with the young man, perhaps 25 years old, who was the waiter. He had spent a year in Thailand and was feeling obligated to remain in the USA because he felt that he would be throwing away his winning birth lottery of being born American. We smiled and suggested that he just do what made him happiest. He said the legality of marijuana in Colorado was causing a crunch in housing availability. Everyone wants to be a part of the cannbis revolution. He mentioned that he was observing the current generation's new American Dream: have a career that allows you to be your own boss and live anywhere you want to. We said that is precisely what we are aiming for...
We downloaded an excellent audiobook called "Stop Saying You're Fine" by Mel Robbins. It's SO good. She is a no-bullshit kinda gal and is a former lawyer, who now has an inspirational radio show. It is full of great stories and tips to inspire even the most stuck person into just doing anything, rather than nothing to make a change in their lives. We took notes as we listened day after day while traversing the corn and wheat belt of the American Midwest. We found this gem of a park to camp in, right in the middle of Kansas. We saw the name on our atlas (yep, we have a vintage paper atlas) and just knew we wanted to camp there. It was beautiful.
We had a lovely weekend with my older brother, who is an air traffic controller. He wanted to take us into his center and show us the behind the scenes of his job, but they said no Canadians allowed in there. So much for that. America's air security is seriously serious.
So we made it to the east coast. We are currently visiting my dad in rural northeastern Pennsylvania. It's so beautiful here. We have been getting up and going for a long morning stroll around the neighborhood where I grew up exploring forests and streams. We saw a family of red foxes and found this turtle in the yard today. A pair of robins built a nest on top of a Christmas wreath that I hung for my dad over a year and a half ago next to his front door.
We harvested a ganoderma tsugae mushroom, a type of reishi that grows on hemlock trees here. We dried a big one for tea and Tanner sautéed a chunk to enjoy fresh also. He said it was delish.
We made a visit to the Himalayan Institute last night for supper and a kirtan, Indian devotional chanting. It was a wonderful visit and in one week we will begin the 200-hour training to become certified yoga instructors. We are very excited.
Front entrance at the Himalayan Institute in Bethany, Pennsylvania
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