Home Sweet Home

We have been home now for a week, and are starting to settle into the routines of daily life, catching up with friends we haven’t seen for a while and preparing for the next phase of life.   In some ways life has slowed back down, and some ways it has sped up.  For the first time we actually sat down, read through the whole blog and reminisced about the trip and all the adventures we had.  Seeing such a wide, varied swath of the US in a short period of time was engaging and left us with a renewed appreciation for the diversity of our great nation. 

At times it seemed like we were taking Claire on a tour of all things negative about our country.  We spent a lot of time learning about the Civil War, Slavery, the Jim Crow era, World Wars, the abuse of Native Americans, and more, but throughout this time we were reminded of  how the U.S. has moved forward toward better justice, and freedom.  Washington DC left us with a distinct overview of the wisdom and humility of our great founding leaders  that is hard to under state.   They had challenges much greater than those we face now yet found common ground and compromise in the pursuit of a society founded on justice, freedom and equality. 

We walked many many miles, and are very proud of Claire for how good of an attitude she had through everything.  Her favorite pair of sandals had to be thrown out at the end of the last day before heading home.  She had thoroughly worn them out.  

The natural landscapes amazed us from the pristine white beaches of Florida,  the caves and rivers of the Ozarks, to the mist shrouded greenery of the Smokey Mountains.  Still, we got home to beautiful Golden to be reminded of what an amazing place we currently live.   Claire, Lucy and I went for a hike on South Table mountain and enjoyed the view down on our little town.  The weather was perfect, the air clear, and the rattle snakes left us alone. Our time away made us appreciate where we live more than ever before because after seeking out some of the best places our nation has to offer we got home to a place with charm and beauty that rivals all of it.  

What’s next?  We are actually headed to California for week, and then when we return school starts.  Claire goes to 1st grade and I start an MBA Program.  My kidney function has continued to decline, and it is time to start buckling down to get things in order.  I now qualify for listing on the deceased donor transplant lists, and since I don’t have a living donor will probably be traveling to a few centers around the west in search of a wait time less than the 6 year wait that exists here in CO.  Our adventure travels are probably over for the foreseeable future but eventually we hope to be back on the road. 

We feel eternally grateful to the friends who hosted us along our trip.  Annie might have killed me if we hadn’t had those periodic reprieves from the cramped quarters of our trailer, but more importantly it was a great reminder of how spread out our social network is.  It’s time to sign off.  We have enjoyed bringing you along for the ride.