I traveled for five weeks around the United States with my two therapy dogs. Except for a few days staying with family and friends, I was on the move every day. I drove across many different terrains, through towns and cities, past fields and forests. Something new opened up for me constantly as I moved through the landscape. I never tired of the opening panorama. I remember driving across the Texas Panhandle, how flat it was! I found that interesting because I am more familiar with hills and valleys. I realized that the drama of that landscape is in the sky because the land is flat. And another surprise, the panhandle is dotted with hundreds and hundreds of wind turbines. The cattle grazing beneath them looked like tiny matchbox toys.
The trip offered me an unfolding adventure of newness. I relished this, wondering each day what new sights would appear. Everyday I also had the same chores and duties to do. I meditated, went through a series of stretches and exercises, and took the dogs for a vigorous workout. I also had to plan our itinerary, contact hotels for reservations, shop for food, buy gas, and give the dogs travel breaks. But the excitement of what would be revealed around the next bend enlivened my days.
Now I am back home. I have been “in place” for about six weeks. My endeavor is to maintain that sense of an unfolding adventure in my life. Each day will have the same mundane chores, but each day is also a new day. The calendar tells me this. The weather does as well. With these simple reminders, I open myself to the realization that like the changing landscape that I drove through, all aspects of life are in process. What, perhaps subtle, perhaps more dramatic newness will this day offer? How can I engage, learn, and grow with this newness? That is the challenge.