This all came out of nowhere. I found myself loving what came from my move to Florida, I loved the opportunities that sprung up and the people I have met. But really this go around I was not prepared to do my bicycle trip so soon after the end of the last one. It wasn't that there was anything wrong with cycling across the country, I loved it, heck when I get back from the great loop I am still going to finish that journey and be the first to do so. No it was that the early return and the trip itself was tainted by some real assholes, and the fact that I fed into it caused it to loose some of its luster for me (but it did not lessen the accomplishment of cycling 1426 miles). So when this opportunity just kind of fell into my lap and me choosing to run with it, I have been reinvigorated to accomplish more and move on past the time when I thought I was broken now it is time to live the life I always wanted. So yeah the Universe proved again I am one of its favorites by just opening the door for the future and what I have been searching for since returning.
When I was contacted about this it just felt right. The other night I traveled a little north of Jacksonville into a beautiful little town called Fernandina Florida to meet Captain Jim. Who met everyone of my expectations, refined but not stuffy, a intellectual who also can relate on a basic level. A well dressed but comfortable man in 70's but the energy and attitude of someone half his age. He wore a nice button down and khaki pants as we sat on the aft deck talking and getting to know each other. We laughed, joked and shared stories of our travels. I found out this is not his first journey on the great loop, he has done many voyages and lives aboard his beautiful boat.
After some great conversation it was time to head into town. We had reservations at this exceptional French restaurant, and it did not disappoint. Turns out that Fernandina is a north Florida luxury vacation spot. Quiet, upscale and beautiful. It is actually the home of Florida's oldest bar as well. If you ever get a chance to spend some time there trust me it will not disappoint, but it is a little stuffy, and we all know I prefer real to stuffy any time....stuffy is a way for others to separate yourself from the rest when really we are all the same.
Jim and I sat there in this great restaurant getting to know each other over Escargot, Calamari, Duck and Salmon all of which was exceptional. As we talked about the journey yet to come, we shared our feelings on travel and found out that we were on the same page. The trip is not about squeezing as much into a short period of time, it is about taking in all that comes and enjoying the moment. Seeing what is unseen, taking in the smells and texture of an area. Beauty shows in the most simple of ways at time. Sometimes it is visiting a civil war battlefield to add your footprints to history or to sit still and watch wild horses run and maybe even join them. At other times beauty comes from the people we meet along the way. The smile of a beautiful woman, a good personal conversation, the act of being present or even sitting and taking in the sun falling into the horizon. Beauty comes in so many forms and we were on the same page about what an epic journey should be. Beauty is everywhere.
This conversation brought back so many wonderful memories of what I loved about my cycle trip. It reminded me of what I seemed to have lost when I returned home prematurely. Thinking back to the reasons I left on my cycle trip, that has led to all this, made my decision to sign on for this journey so easy. I look forward to walking the streets of so many amazing cities and meeting people who just like in the cycling community share a common bond. The majority of the earth is covered by water and though I won't see even 1% of it I will however see sights unseen at least to these eyes.
I have no idea what will come and the greatest thing is I don't care. I just want to be a part of the moment a part of something epic a part of life. I may just find what I have been looking for out on the loop but either way this is what I came for Florida for.
It is often said the best is yet to come and well I will always subscribe to that. I think that belief is what has carried me through my illness, through the pain created by others as well as myself, through the ups and downs that is life. This journey is the perfect way for me to focus on my writing, finish my book, have amazing tales to send off and learn another aspect of life. This journey reminds me of a quote by Buzz Lightyear "To Infinity and Beyond" because the beginning for me was my end just three and half years ago. Since then it has been a fight within me to be who I want to be and who I was, to me this part of the journey of my life I am counting on separating what was and what is. The first proved to me what I can do, this is about letting loose what was and the next is (aka the return journey) will be about going beyond.
Taking a moment to breathe, taking a moment to be a part of the world and loving the moment is really what it is all about. This is going to be epic and this may just be that door opening once again.....I just have to walk through it to see what is beyond.
