quote of the day

Again and again I congratulate myself on my so-called poverty. I was almost disappointed yesterday to find thirty dollars in my desk which I did not know I possessed, though now I should be sorry to lose it. -Thoreau

p.s.

This morning I finished reading The Lone Ranger and Tonto Fistfight in Heaven, by Sherman Alexie. A collection of short stories, written when he was some ridiculous age, like 20. It is wonderfully written, most of the time. His stories are lyrical, totally hilarious, really entertaining, insightful, mystical, and really honest. This is what I'd say about the stories: each individual story is interesting to read, entertaining, enjoyable, and sometimes a bummer. But the collection taken as a whole is so sad. Like, I can't really even tell you how sad it is. (It's about life on the Spokane Indian Reservation, which is where Alexie is from.) So incredibly sad. I'm not even sure if there's hope in it. I mean, in any individual story there is definitely hope, but taken as a whole you just want to sink to your knees and weep, if not give up. Which I think is precisely what he was going for, because it sounds like that's what it's like to live on the reservation, and so in that sense he really succeeded. I'd recommend the book.

home home on the ranges.

Actually, I don't live on the range, and I'm just fine with that. At the moment, I really like living in Indiana, although you can't really say I've been "living" here as of late.

We got in around 12:30 last night, after 14 hours of driving yesterday. Phew, that was a lot of driving! But it was a very good day, and we were both thankful. We fell into bed and slept soundly until about 8:00 a.m. when we awoke because, as Jon likes to point out, we are still on west coast time.

It's great to be back. I speak for myself (Jon can speak for himself on his blog, if he wants!). There are still a few final leaves clinging to the branches, so I'm glad to be here for autumn's tail end!

I've been doing all the stuff you do when you get home after a long trip. Groceries, and uploading photos. You can see one of our photos at the top of the page here: this one was taken in Tucson, AZ, right outside Aeyn's house, when Jon and I were lounging on Aeyn's front stoop. The thing is that uploading photos onto my blog is such an overwhelming idea to me right now....but let's hope that the overwhelmingness decreases as the days go by! Because, we have some good photos. Or, as Mel says, photogs. Or, is that Lori?

Guess I don't have much more to say right now. Autumn light sure is the best kind. Love y'all.

rolla, missouri

We are in Rolla, Missouri, and it's 1:49 in Arizona, which I think means it's 3:49 in Indiana, but I don't know what that means for where we are now. Isn't that so often how it is--you have a hint about where you'll end up, and where you've been, but you've got no goshdarn clue about where you are. It's been a great day so far, just drivin'.

Yesterday a really special and unexpected thing happened. We had woken up in Santa Rosa, New Mexico, and I'd e-mailed my dad and told him we were headed toward Oklahoma City. Immediately upon reading the e-mail, he phoned me from Jerusalem, and reminded me that his first cousin, the woman I'm named after, lives in Oklahoma City. He didn't have a current phone number for her, but he had her sister's number, and he gave the number to me and encouraged me to call Carol in order to get ahold of Tamie.

Well I tell ya. I hemmed and hawed about making that phone call all day long, all 6 hours or so between Santa Rosa and OC. I mean, I hate calling people I know! I'm so shy and nervous with the dang phone. But in the end I decided that I'd regret not calling her more than I'd be nervous about calling her, so I took the plunge. Rather to my surprise, she was overjoyed that I'd called and even offered to drive to me. (We were staying out on a farm that night, a farm owned by Jon's aunt, so we were a ways from the city.)

Tamie and I met in a gas station, which is rather lovely and poetic, in a middle American way, now that I think about it. We sat there in rural Oklahoma, at a gas station table, Tamie drinking the gawdawful coffee they had there. Next to us was a table of overall-clad men, just sitting around at 10:00 at night, jawin'. Tamie told me stories of my Alaskan grandparents--she'd moved to Alaska in sixth grade--stories that I hadn't heard before and found comforting and meaningful. We talked all about family, and I gotta tell you, I don't get to sit around with extended family very often at all, just talking. And she listened to me. It was one of my better, sweetest experiences on this journey.

So! Now we're headin' on in. I suppose we'll get home late. I have to say that this has been one of our best days together. Maybe there's just something about Missouri. What with their roadside stands of fireworks, their dozens of "Only if America Returns to God Will She Be Saved" signs, their advertisements for knives.

May the road rise to meet each of you.

busy time in the world

It's been rather a busy time in the world, hasn't it? Today marks the 20th anniversary of the Berlin Wall falling, and two days ago the House voted to pass the Health Care Reform Bill.

I remember the Berlin Wall falling. I can't believe I'm old enough to remember a historic event that happened 20 years ago. But what really makes me feel like I'm maturing is that it seems to me like the Berlin Wall just fell a few years ago. I mean, there are 20-year-olds born in East Germany who have grown up without any memory of the wall. I know some 20-year-olds. In fact, some of my best friends are 20-year-olds! Twenty years ago I was 12, in seventh grade, in Jerusalem, Israel.

Jon and I made it to eastern New Mexico last night. Today our destination: Oklahoma City.

quote of the day

It is finally truthful action that sets us free for God, not true words in our head, which ask very little of us in terms of actual trust or surrender. We can believe all the doctrines of the church perfectly and never trust God or love one human being. -Richard Rohr

you know you've been in flagstaff when:

"Mine is the Buddhist approach to pooping. Please do not disrespect my religion." -Jon Erdman