The Path to Change

A quick recap:

A year ago, I set out on a journey to travel across the country with everything packed up into my turtle shell Chevrolet. I anticipated downsizing to traveling by bicycle since my vehicle had potential for a fatal breakdown; after more than 10,000 miles, however, my Impala triumphed the journey and I ended up continuing onto the next chapter of my life in Cirque Italia.  I have now taken a break from the circus to commence a new journey, this time on only two wheels with a partner.

This week, I am back in St. Paul, MN after working on the Round River Farm (where I began my solo journey last year) and returning from the Project Earth [Wookiefoot] festival. It’s almost surprising to me that I’ve gone coast to coast and come full circle here and still feel this itch to keep traveling and learning from people. I do know that I will be burnt out on this nomadic lifestyle by the end of the year though, and that gives me motivation to seek more sedentary opportunities somewhere in the country as I trek through this adventure.

What have I learned in the last year?

Well, as Wookiefoot would say, “That cycle keeps on spinning just as long as you’re alive.” Life is all about recycling of ideas and circumstances, reevaluating yourself and your understanding of this universe. I learned about the circle of life and Quakerism in Minnesota; fearlessness and risk-taking in Ohio; Taoism and philosophy in Pennsylvania; psychoactive drugs and self-discovery in North Carolina; community and tolerance in Cirque Italia; the power of story-telling and helping people in California; the environmental dissociation that occurs when traveling via a car rather than bicycle or on foot; the importance of farming and having respect for the earth through WWOOFing; the generosity and compassion of the general human race through Couchsurfing and WarmShowers (we truly aren’t as divided as the media leads us to believe)…. And more! These things maybe could have been taught in a classroom, but nothing inside four walls compares to the sound of the ocean, the smell of a forest, the sight on top of a mountain, the feeling of a welcoming embrace by a stranger, or the liberation of FREE education through podcasts, books, and a diverse sample of people.

One of the most important things I spent time learning about though was the circle of life. I can thank my WWOOF hosts David and Lise Abasz for much of this. “The life of the soil is a round river: emerging and returning back into itself.” The trees and plants of the forest have an incredible communication system that lives and breathes similar to our own bodies and brain neural networks… The earth doesn’t just host or provide life, it truly IS alive. We were born out of it and will return back to it cyclically. “If we don’t nurture nature we’re just wrecking our own future.” It is completely asinine to believe that we don’t have an impact on climate change or that we don’t have an obligation to make conscious efforts to care about our use (and waste) of resources. Nothing grinds my gears more than those who claim to value life but mindlessly trash the very entity that gives it to us in a consumer-driven arrogance, ESPECIALLY by those who spend time worshiping a being that they believe created all of this beauty FOR them.

I watched “Before the Flood” a few weeks ago, and cried as I witnessed yet again how destructive my behavior is, even in my efforts to be better. “Before the Flood” is a documentary described as follows:

If you could know the truth about the threat of climate change — would you want to know? Before the Flood, presented by National Geographic, features Leonardo DiCaprio on a journey as a United Nations Messenger of Peace, traveling to five continents and the Arctic to witness climate change firsthand. He goes on expeditions with scientists uncovering the reality of climate change and meets with political leaders fighting against inaction. He also discovers a calculated disinformation campaign orchestrated by powerful special interests working to confuse the public about the urgency of the growing climate crisis. With unprecedented access to thought leaders around the world, DiCaprio searches for hope in a rising tide of catastrophic news.