Monday December 11, 2023
Last night we were up late getting things ready for the trip. We had planned on leaving around 5am, but we all just slept in a bit. We ended up leaving closer to 8am, and the kids were pretty upset about it. I was pretty upset about it. I was also super frustrated because Betty had packed way more than I had anticipated. She had some gifts for her family and her own juicer, and a couple of extra bags with hair and makeup stuff. I thought we had decided to just pack light so we could see how our equipment would work out, and we could start living the simple life sooner. Betty was thinking that if we had the room, it would be way better to be a bit more comfortable for the road-trip portion of our trip. I was just super frustrated as I saw the car get more and more full, and then I had to put the carrier on the top as well.
So we got on the road, and things went well for the first hour or so. As we approached South Bend, Indiana I decided to pull off so that we could see the University of Notre Dame. It’s been something I’ve wanted to do ever since I saw the movie Rudy (the first movie that ever made me cry). So we pulled off the freeway and drove around town and took a few pictures.
Then we stopped at a gas station for a quick pit stop. I filled up the tank, and Betty and River went in for a potty break. Then they came out, and we pulled away. While we were pulling away I looked out my sideview mirror just in time to see the hose, which I had not placed back in its place, go flying out of my tank. I hopped out of the car, looked around to see if any damage was done to car or pump (there wasn’t), made sure nobody had seen (they hadn’t), and we carried on our way.
Despite the gas tank faux pas, Notre Dame had me feeling in a better mood, so I decided to reach out to Betty and see if she would forgive me for being a knucklehead while I was packing in the morning. I apologized for being a knucklehead, and she forgave me. When we got married, the man who performed the marriage told us that the most important words in our marriage would be gracias (thank you) te amo (I love you), and lo siento (I’m sorry). I’m grateful for that counsel. It has served us well, and I’m sure will continue to do so.
We stopped for lunch at Walmart in Peru, Illinois. We already had some cheese and hamburger buns in the car, so we bought some pepperoni and some sauce to put on them and some mandarins, and we continued on our way. This is pretty typical of the kind of meals we will be eating on this trip. Simple, simple. That sparked a good conversation with the kids about the difference between pilgrimage and tourism. In a book called The Art of Pilgrimage, Phil Cousineau writes about pilgrimage as a way of traveling that focuses much more on the process than the destination. It’s a bit paradoxical, because pilgrimage is certainly a journey towards a sacred destination, but pilgrims (unlike tourists) are never really disappointed by the experience. If a tourist plans a trip to the beach, and it rains, they feel cheated. The pilgrim never feels cheated because they understand that the rain is part of the journey.
That conversation was a perfect introduction to the evening.
As we made our way across the rolling hills of Iowa, the sun set lower and lower on the horizon. Betty was driving during this time, and the sun got brighter and brighter in her eyes as she drove into the sunset. Once the sun dropped below the horizon, however, the blue hour hit, and we found ourselves in the middle of a giant windmill farm. The windmills blades were perfectly silhouetted. It was just awesome.
Just ahead of Omaha, the kids spotted our favorite rest stop in Iowa. They are all amazing, but this one is special because it has a giant windmill blade standing on end. This night it was especially cool because of these lighted cubes that were there on the sidewalk. The kids loved them, and we stopped just for fun.
In Omaha we stopped and used a gift card that a friend had generously given us before we left, and we splurged on tacos at Taco Bell. Then we hopped back in the car and drove the rest of the way to Grand Island, Nebraska. It’s almost exactly halfway between Jonesville and Orem. We just got one room. Kimball and Ian slept on the floor.
15 hours in the car. 800 miles driven.
