I've found myself settled in. It's only been a month and some change, but I am rather enjoying the stationary living. I have the pleasure to be staying with some friends I met on the Young and Wild expedition of 2013. These two, Jonelle and Ben were camping in Big Sur with there 4 year old, Sonny, the same time our pack of cross country cyclists were climbing the cliffs...it's a trip to think how the universe works in such crazy ways. I never saw myself living and working in California. Having such wonderful, loving people surrounding me in this place...but Santa Cruz is truely a magical place.
So let us see, back tracking...After I flew home from a winter working at Copper Mountain Colorado, I worked in Flower Mound at Massage Life. I saved enough money in two months to join Elijah and his two sisters on the second edition of The Young Philanthropist's, Young and Wild Expedition...2014.
After a humbling reunion in Panama City, Florida with the family in late May...Moma Joan, kindly drove me a few hours up to Toccoa, Georgia. Where I would reunite with one of the riders, Elijah, from the first expedition. There we organized the last minute details for the 2 month adventure. Memories and excitement overwhelmed us both. It was hard to contain...the amazement we both knew our riders and driver (Elijah's moma :)) were about the experience.
We drove up to Pennsilvania in a sketchy van, provided by the grace of God a few days before the trip was going to launch. There, we built our bikes, and moved forward with preparation at Matt's house (co-founder of The YP).
We lost a rider that weekend. Timmy. On our ride back in from The New Jersey Shore we had to take him to the hospital. Suffering from dehydration, further developing into Rhabdomylosis. He was fine after a couple of days of fluids, but a very worried mother back home decided she wanted him home.
Having to continue in order to keep to the schedule, Timmy stayed with Matt's family until his mother came to bring him back home to Georgia. This left 4 riders and Eli's mom to drive the sketch chase car.
Over all it was a great challenge. For all of us. Jamie is 18 and Jessie 19, both attending Toccoa Falls (like there older brother, Elijah who is 21 now). A small Christian college tucked away in one of the most beautiful places I have ever seen.
The power of connection, communication, and love in the Smith household was overwhelming and beautiful. Something I had never experienced.
We road and drove across the states in 7 weeks...before school was back in session... As for myself, I had no plan after this trip...kind of sounds familiar, eh? haha. I don't think this lifestyle is going anywhere for quite some time..if ever.
The New Jersey Shore. The confusion of the long Schulykill Trail in Phili. The hospital trip for a warning we didn't take serious enough in Pottstown. Getting lost in the rain for two hours in Bowertown. The flat, not so terrible, beauty of Ohio. Missing visiting friends in Akron. Making calls and catching up on time in Indi. Visiting Don and expanding in Chicago. (Don is a friend I met through my roommate this winter in Copper, Colorado! Another crazy event that followed through...Don fished in Alaska for the summer, after his time in the mountains...giving me new ideas for the future :))...anyways! Riding and exploring Madison, WI with family (Jacob, Anne, Little William, and Jane Morrison). Bike trails through the North East. Great sunsets and long days of riding through Iowa and South Dakota. Saying so long to our angel in the drivers seat. The teams moma went home after a 3 week adventure, leaving Elijah and I to switch between our bike seat and the drivers seat. (Let me tell you....the driving was harder than the riding)...I want to thank MaryJane for being with us. Her presence helped protect and grow us.
The challenges. Decision making. Team work. Following. Expanded as we hit South Dakota, Wyoming, Colorado. Racing down the Vail pass with the wet, cold moisture cleaning our faces might have been one of the best times I spent with the girls :)
Untouched territory for all of us. The unknown waited.
My appreciation and respect for Elijah grew and grew. To watch him work. With others. With us. With himself. With God... I am honored I got to witness it. Jessie and Jamie were like the younger sisters I never had. My accountability shifted...and although I could have done better each day, the three of us grew closer. We still talk often, thankfully...I feel loved and useful. They continue to expand my knowledge and accountability. I am so glad they were brave enough to take on such a challenge. Both girls are so strong to begin with, this expedition has done more for them than I think any of us will ever comprehend. Most importantly, they have much more room to grow, and expand now, with this under their belt I suppose.
My wreckless, less organized, spontaneous, rough, ideas and Elijah's, more organized, responisble, spontaneous, timely plans didn't quite climb gracefully with each other...non-the-less... they climbed together. We all climbed together. Each day.
Changing our sleeping pattern in Utah, to avoid the dead, heat of the day. Hot desert. Burning fuses. Missing the comfort of our panniers. So over the stupid van. Missing family. Missing home. Ready for the future.
Relief hit at the coast. Breaking waves and ocean mist. The salt water washed our spirits. Night riding between the quiet pilars of the Golden Gate. Visiting our friends in Santa Cruz (Ben and Jonelle). Heading down the coast to our end destination of Newport Beach. There we stayed with some very blessed and brilliant people. Elijah and Victor stayed with Brandy, also known as the candy lady during the expedition 2013. The perfect place to end a trip of this sort. A huge, comfortable home. With great people and even better conversation. It was a bitter-sweet...it was over. Again. How would I feel this year...? Knowing the toll of what "the end" did to me last year...I still had work to do however. I had to find my way back up the coast to Santa Cruz. Solo.
After a couple days of decompressing in Newport, the Smith's were off to Georgia. As sad as it was to leave, there was much more excitment for each of us in the very near future.
*it's a pretty vague over view of such an intense trip..if you have specific questions about the trip...anything your curiousity is burning to know, please ask...it also helps me to think about specifics...to dig deeper into the experience.
Thanks :)
Cheers!
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