Between the land and the sea, there are the roads that we travel to get where we need to go, where we want to go, and then there are the roads that take us on the ride of our life; a journey of self discovery. Though the ride is rough at times; it always leads us to our heart’s desire.
The first rays of the morning sun gently woke me from a restless sleep in a cold, dark motel room. I sluggishly pulled myself out of the stiff bed, gathered my belongings and readied myself for the journey ahead. As I was checking out with the desk clerk, I saw his dark eyes fill with tears as these poetic words flowed from his lips “The cost of turning your back is always much more than we can bare. The past can never be undone, but time always reveals the bitter taste of loosing everything that you held so close.” I looked into the old man’s eyes, smiled then turned away. As I walked out the door I muttered under my breath “We eventually loose everything we hold dear.”
I watched the old motel fade away in a cloud of dust out of my rear view mirror. Many hours and miles passed by and I was staring out the window through the teardrops. The scenery surrounding me tempted me with the promise of a smile. I gave in at various points along the way. Stopping to admire the many shades of green that painted the forest along the horizon, the way that the lakes reflected the skies; making it impossible to tell where the earth ended and the sky began, the birds chirping welcoming the morning, the calf struggling to its feet after birth. After witnessing these marvelous acts of nature; it left me light hearted. I began to feel the bliss that I had so much desired to feel as I walked down the aisle.
As I was coming through a small town; I pulled off at a cemetery where the town had gathered to lay three American soldiers to rest. I looked around at all the tears in the faces of the wives, children, parents, grandparents, aunts and uncles who survived these young men. As the men’s former comrades fired their rifles; a chill went down my spine and everything I had witnessed that day sunk in. I asked myself what if that was me bury him? Then I realized the beauty of life is short lived but nothing short of a miracle. If life was a permanent state; it would not be as wonderful as precious to us and we would never truly see the beauty in the things that I had seen.
All I could hear were the desk clerk’s words as I hurried back to the shore. As I passed each of my stopping places I became more eager. Soon I could smell the salt in the air and the warmth of the sun as it set. Finally, I could feel the sand beneath my feet as I ran down the beach to find the chairs, the ribbons, the flowers and the alter; they were all still there and the man that I loved was right there waiting. I told him of my every step and thought from the past day and a half, as we walked down the beach under the stars and the moon; he never looked so wonderful and I never loved him more. “I want more than anything to take the first steps of our life’s journey together, but today is not that day” these were my last words to him before we feel asleep in each others embrace beneath the midnight sky. The following day we began a journey from one coast to another.
Seven weeks later, he boarded a plane that took him overseas to the middle of a hell fire. He fought for his country, to better a society and to come home to me for five and a half months, but the roads that he chose lead to his heart’s desire; to die with honor and live forever. He will always live through our memories. In my mind he will always be the beautiful face that made me laugh on the beaches of California, the starry skies in Texas, underneath the neon signs in Tennessee and in the mid afternoon rain in Florida.
That drive changed my life and my entire perspective on life and love and all aspects of it. I lost the one I loved more than life itself, but would he have been so beautiful to me if he was immortal. Between the land and the sea, there are the roads that we travel to get where we need to go, where we want to go, and then there are the roads that take us on the ride of our life; a journey of self discovery. Though the ride is rough at times; it always leads us to our heart’s desire. That is what he taught me. Our paths have split for now, but he will be with me with every step I take along my journey.
The first rays of the morning sun gently woke me from a restless sleep in a cold, dark motel room. I sluggishly pulled myself out of the stiff bed, gathered my belongings and readied myself for the journey ahead. As I was checking out with the desk clerk, I saw his dark eyes fill with tears as these poetic words flowed from his lips “The cost of turning your back is always much more than we can bare. The past can never be undone, but time always reveals the bitter taste of loosing everything that you held so close.” I looked into the old man’s eyes, smiled then turned away. As I walked out the door I muttered under my breath “We eventually loose everything we hold dear.”
I watched the old motel fade away in a cloud of dust out of my rear view mirror. Many hours and miles passed by and I was staring out the window through the teardrops. The scenery surrounding me tempted me with the promise of a smile. I gave in at various points along the way. Stopping to admire the many shades of green that painted the forest along the horizon, the way that the lakes reflected the skies; making it impossible to tell where the earth ended and the sky began, the birds chirping welcoming the morning, the calf struggling to its feet after birth. After witnessing these marvelous acts of nature; it left me light hearted. I began to feel the bliss that I had so much desired to feel as I walked down the aisle.
As I was coming through a small town; I pulled off at a cemetery where the town had gathered to lay three American soldiers to rest. I looked around at all the tears in the faces of the wives, children, parents, grandparents, aunts and uncles who survived these young men. As the men’s former comrades fired their rifles; a chill went down my spine and everything I had witnessed that day sunk in. I asked myself what if that was me bury him? Then I realized the beauty of life is short lived but nothing short of a miracle. If life was a permanent state; it would not be as wonderful as precious to us and we would never truly see the beauty in the things that I had seen.
All I could hear were the desk clerk’s words as I hurried back to the shore. As I passed each of my stopping places I became more eager. Soon I could smell the salt in the air and the warmth of the sun as it set. Finally, I could feel the sand beneath my feet as I ran down the beach to find the chairs, the ribbons, the flowers and the alter; they were all still there and the man that I loved was right there waiting. I told him of my every step and thought from the past day and a half, as we walked down the beach under the stars and the moon; he never looked so wonderful and I never loved him more. “I want more than anything to take the first steps of our life’s journey together, but today is not that day” these were my last words to him before we feel asleep in each others embrace beneath the midnight sky. The following day we began a journey from one coast to another.
Seven weeks later, he boarded a plane that took him overseas to the middle of a hell fire. He fought for his country, to better a society and to come home to me for five and a half months, but the roads that he chose lead to his heart’s desire; to die with honor and live forever. He will always live through our memories. In my mind he will always be the beautiful face that made me laugh on the beaches of California, the starry skies in Texas, underneath the neon signs in Tennessee and in the mid afternoon rain in Florida.
That drive changed my life and my entire perspective on life and love and all aspects of it. I lost the one I loved more than life itself, but would he have been so beautiful to me if he was immortal. Between the land and the sea, there are the roads that we travel to get where we need to go, where we want to go, and then there are the roads that take us on the ride of our life; a journey of self discovery. Though the ride is rough at times; it always leads us to our heart’s desire. That is what he taught me. Our paths have split for now, but he will be with me with every step I take along my journey.
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