Our trip around the world comes to an end. I knew this day would come. I just didn’t think that when it came – it would be so hard. I am deeply proud of all of us. This adventure would have been a completely different one if we weren’t all together. From the sights we saw (Taj Mahal, the pyramids, The Colosseum in Rome, the Eiffel Tower to the experiences (swimming in the Ganges, using really bad bathrooms, being thirsty and hungry, walking in Gandhi’s footsteps, trekking to remote villages) to the food (from garden to table) to the people we met (new friends and old) – this trip has been over the top! I am ever so grateful to the Huss’ for asking me what I wanted to do with our time in between Jesse’s jobs. Montreal was not an ideal situation for us, but it set us up for the adventure of a lifetime. If you always look to the positive- amazing doors will open.
Our kids have been in four schools in four years, we’ve moved around so much in the last couple years (especially in last six months) that when people ask me where we’re from- I have to stop and think for awhile. We are lucky that they are pretty tough kids who understand what our lifestyle is like. This is part of their deal at least until they’re 18 – then they’ll fly the coop! I am amazed at their physical energy, their inner strength, their ability to adapt in new situations and they all have an amazing sense of humor. My goodness, that can get you very far in life. Emerson is tenacious. She will figure out how to survive in any given situation. She also has a loving side with animals and friends- she is fiercely loyal. She is also a killer navigator- she was our living GPS – navigating us through Europe. Maddux is a trooper- a true explorer. He loves hiking, nature, wildlife and seeing new things. He is a stellar traveling companion who will keep you laughing even when crap is hittin’ the fan! Lennon has been our leader. He likes to be in the front of the pack and has boundless amounts of energy (most of the time.) At times when he was cranky- we had to stop and remind ourselves that he’s only five. Lennon acted as a peacekeeper for Emerson and Maddux always encouraging everyone to remain calm.
Jesse made this all possible with his planning, his enthusiasm and his ferocity when it comes to working hard and completing a project. He has the strongest work ethic out of any person I have ever met. He threw himself into the preparation and execution of our adventure as he does with everything else in life and it rocked!!!!!! The trip destroyed any expectations we might have had when we began the adventure. We saw wonders of the world, we went into different hospitals around the world (thanks to Emerson getting rabies shots), we visited temples, mosques & churches, we rode camels, elephants & horses, slept in the desert, climbed a pyramid and went inside!, went skydiving, swam in the Ganges, came face to face with mummies and King Tut’s tomb, floated in the Dead Sea, touched the Wailing Wall, the Berlin Wall, saw the leaning tower of Pisa, saw where Jesus was crucified, where Buddha’s eyebrow hair is housed and walked where Ghandi walked right before he was killed. We fed a jaguar, hippos, pet a tiger, got attacked by a pack of monkeys, watched people poop on sidewalks, learned a whole lot about the Vietnam War, saw bodies cremated, played with children that had never seen white kids, swam in a pool right next to the Nile, saw Mona Lisa & The Thinker, slept in a car, an airport and alongside rats and cockroaches, rafted in the Himalayas in Kathmandu, walked up a waterfall, went sand sledding, explored caves, tunnels and visited with stellar people (and all that is just the tip of the iceberg!) Oh, life is good!!!
I have been struggling with the Marschmadness blog ending for some time now. I was afraid that it would be too sad and final, but then I thought it doesn’t have to come to a full and complete stop. Our journey is on-going and our life in and of itself – is “madness.” I looked up the word for a clear definition and it means craziness and lunacy. Life is crazy- change is constant (good and bad.) How you roll with everything is up to you. Do I deal with life differently than the average person? Sure, but I never wanted to be average anyways! I love this conversation from Alice in Wonderland: “Have I gone mad?” Asks Alice. The Mad Hatter replies, “I’m afraid so. You’re entirely bonkers. But I’ll tell you a secret. All the best people are.”
If you’ve followed along the blog from the beginning or just popped in here and there- thank you so much for joining us on our journey. (Thank you to all that helped us along the way, made comments, sent love/positive energy or just wished us a safe journey. It all worked!)
I don’t know what Marschmadness will become, so I will just let it unfold as it should.
I will end the official world travel portion of my blog with words from Louis Armstrong’s song “what a wonderful world.” (I love this song so much that when Jesse and I got married- I walked down the aisle to it!)
“I see trees of green, red roses too
I see ’em bloom, for me and for you
And I think to myself…. what a wonderful world.
I see skies of blue, clouds of white
Bright blessed days, dark sacred nights
And I think to myself …..what a wonderful world.
The colors of a rainbow, so pretty in the sky
Are also on the faces of people going by
I see friends shaking hands, saying ‘how do you do?’
They’re really saying ‘I love you’
I hear babies cry, I watch them grow
They’ll learn much more
than I’ll never know
And I think to myself …..what a wonderful world
Yes I think to myself …….what a wonderful world.”
Indeed it is.
Onward and upward, my friends! Shine on!!!
Love!