The Last Great Road Trip

There may actually be the possibility that sometime in the future John and I will road trip again with all of the kids but considering that our eldest is 20, I remain skeptical on that front.  That isn't the reason why though that I consider this to be our last great road trip anyway. Rather more it is from the realization that my role in the original purpose of the road trip in our family may in fact be served now.
As a parent you have many hopes and dreams for your children.  Our annual summer road trip epitomized many of those hopes and dreams that I held for our children.  I hoped they would be adventurous and daring.  I hoped they would be brave...brave enough to pursue their dreams and their hopes. Their ambitions and their happiness.
With that aspiration in mind, each summer we would load the truck with tents and camping supplies and point ourselves in the general direction of north, south, east or west...and go exploring.  We tended toward the less travelled roads and often found ourselves in interesting predicaments.  We were one of the first vehicles on the new road built across Labrador and rather shocked some town inhabitants when we came bumping into their little village one day.  They had not realized the road was open yet. We have driven single lane switchbacks over mountain passes ending our journey in a mountain valley of an historic western ranch surprising cattle and ranch hands alike.  We have wrecked idlers, burnt out brakes, barely caught ferries, missed ferries and spent a glorious night in the midnight sun on the shores of the Beaufort Sea.  We have struggled with blisters and fatigue and long hiking trails and lack of food.  There have been sleepness nights in tents as wildlife roamed around us and uncomfortable nights trying to sleep in truck seats or just driving through the dark because accommodation cannot be found anywhere.
There were a couple of rules for our trips.  One of them was that route planning would be minimal.  Beyond a start date and an end date and a general direction in which to travel, all other attempts to organize the specific route of the journey were treated with disdain.  I remember one year John produced a TripTik that he had garnered from the CAA.  It went out the window. We travelled with the freedom of a curious mind.
The other rule was that the scenery was your movie.  There were no DVD's or portable movie players brought on our trips.  At the start of each journey, the kids would get their own special journal, pens and artists pencils to record their adventure.  To this day our kids have kept their journals from each summer documenting the highs and lows of our adventures.
The most important rule though and the real reason I dragged my butt all over North America in a truck stuffed to the gunnales with kids and diapers and pedialyte and medications and hiking boots and rain coats and tents and sleeping bags...was to teach them to be brave in life.  Being brave does not mean that you cannot be fearful either.  In fact the two go hand in hand in my opinion.  Bravery is going into the unknown not knowing what to expect with your heart in your mouth and assessing your risks with each step you take...but still taking those steps, still realizing those dreams, still having hope.
I was not thinking of our trip this summer as being the last great road trip but on our first night out I began to realize that perhaps the seeds of journeys past had taken root and perhaps just perhaps this road trip would be more about me watching and learning.  This point was especially driven home when we backed into our campsite on our first night out and before I had barely put the truck in park, the doors had been flung open and the kids were in action.  Tents were set up, and sleeping bags deployed.  The fire was lit.  The campstove was in action and supper was bubbling while I was still searching under the backseat for my flipflops so I could take a walk down to the water.  Following supper, dishes were cleaned and everything packed away neat and tidy to bear proof our site without a word from me.  And mixed into all of this was the exploring.  Everyone checking out our surroundings. Curious about this trail or that lake.  Looking and poking into their environment to discover the wonders.  This continued throughout the whole road trip.  Each time we stopped the doors would fling open by people curious to explore their environment.  In Dawson City everyone wanted to see different things so off we went in our different directions exploring and then we met up at the end of the day to share our tales.  And that was an epiphany too.  No longer was I organizing outings and marching about with a little crowd following me.  Rather they were striking out in their own directions and pursuing their interests and I loved that because I do not care if they follow my interests.  I just care that they be curious and get out there and follow their own.
So this summer became the last great road trip because I was no longer teaching my children to be curious and full of wonderment at the beautiful world around us.  Instead I struggled to keep up with their curiosity and I marveled at their bravery.  And I realized that life is a road trip of curves and bumps and right turns and wrong turns and blown tires and broken gaskets. And it is full of amazing sights and sounds and it is rich with the tapestry of the world around us.  It hums with the thrill of the road ahead and the wonders yet to be seen.