I am pretty much in the middle of a much needed end of summer vacation. 3 weeks in recovery mode after an incredible, but very busy summer.
Almost 2 weeks ago, I attempted something I've never done before. We were heading down to Salt Lake City to visit some of Nicole's family. Not knowing how Jax would do on the 950 mile (14 hour) trip, we decided I would drive through the night - leaving in the evening and arriving early the next morning.
How was it? Amazing. I would do it again in a second.
Some of my experiences during this night:
3:00pm Car is loaded and everyone is ready to go. We planned to leave at 5 - decide to leave now.5:00pm Hit the only traffic we would experience. Changing from 405 to I-90 in Seattle. Another big advantage of driving through the night.
7:00pm Stopped for dinner. Nicole moved to the back seat with Jaxson to get some sleep.
8:00pm Alone in the front seat, hearing Elmo playing in the back as Jax was getting ready to fall asleep, I watch as the sun slowly sets in my rear view mirror as we drove southeast. It was an incredible sight.
9:00pm We enter the lonely roads of eastern Oregon. I watch as the first stars begin to appear. One at a time at first, then almost at once, a flood of light as the sky filled with millions and millions of stars.
11:00pm On the dark quiet roads of Oregon, the stars are even more majestic than they were just a couple of hours ago. They shine bright and encompass me as I look to the left and the right horizons, straight ahead, and straight up through the sunroof. I feel small.
12:00am We leave Oregon and enter even darker, more quite roads through Idaho. The moon is exactly straight to my left, out the drivers window. I spend the night keeping a close eye on it.
2:00am The first time I actually yawn. Still feeling strong though. Listening to podcasts, eating beef jerky, drinking coffee, and keeping a close eye on that sky.
3:00am Entering Utah. This hour is the toughest of the night. I soon realize we are no longer in Pacific Daylight Time, but Mountain. It is actually 4:00am. Not sure why, but the realization gives me new energy.
4:00am Those amazing stars I watched appear just a few hours before begin to slowly disappear. One by one, the sky begins to empty and the horizon in front of me begins to lighten. A new day has come. I appreciate it. I am grateful for it. I reflect on how ungrateful I can be every other day as I just roll out of bed. I thank God for it. More than once.
5:00am That amazing sun that gave me such a beautiful show in my rear view mirror at the beginning of the journey slowly peaks over the horizon in front of me. Once again, it puts on an amazing show. I debate with myself the sense of experiencing a sunrise or a sunset verses staring at the billions and billions of stars in the vast, never ending universe.
6:00am We pull into Nicole's grandparents driveway. After saying hi and very quickly washing my face and brushing my teeth, I sleep.
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