Thursday, March 25, 2010

Where will it take me?



I have a serious love affair with travel. I mean, I ADORE the smell of the airport. I like the plastic molded chairs in the waiting area. I actually don't mind taking off my shoes and putting all my stuff in a plastic bin and standing in line and tossing my half-empty water bottle that I just paid $4 for in the garbage and delays and lost luggage. All those little hassles. It all means I'm going somewhere. I'm seeing something new. Or something I've seen before, (although I prefer new) but either way, it's an adventure. A new road traveled. New people to meet. Amazing scenery. An open road. A meal I've never tasted. A bed I've never slept in. An experience like no other.

I swear, I could be a nomad. I looked it up. Traditionally nomadic behavior is increasingly rare in industrialized countries. Nomadic cultures are split into three categories; hunter/gatherers, pastoral, and peripatetic nomads.

Now let's face it, I enjoy my fruits and vegetables from the co-op share I participate in; but I don't want to gather the seasonally available wild plants and game, even if it is by far the oldest human subsistence method.

And there aren't a whole lot of sheep or cows in Nutley, so the pastoralist type doesn't seem to be my gig. Although it does sound peaceful. All those hours spent alone, outdoors, just you and your thoughts. But then the rainy, cold days would be awful. And I don't really like sheep or cows or the way they smell.

But peripatetic nomads--the ones who offer the skills of a craft or a trade to those they travel among, well that just may be me. I mean, it's not like I know what I would offer.... Maybe just a laugh and a story and sharing a glass of wine with you. Or using a crayon to color in your coloring book. Or holding your baby while you fold your laundry. Or making you some granola so you have a decent breakfast. Or listening to your story because I know you need to tell it.

But peripatetic, that's me. I could pack a bag and just go. I want to buy an RV and jump in without a map and see where it takes me. I want to experience it all. Just hit the gas with arms and heart wide open and go. REALLY go. It's a big world out there.

Where will it take me?

3 comments:

Steph said...

I love this post!!

Think it could take you up to Ottawa someday? We're really not that far. :)

Steph
xo

Kim said...

Swing by VA before you go and take me too!

jenica said...

meeeeee too! i can think of some really lovely places for you to travel and offer your skills and trades. mmmmm, skills and trades. ;-D xoxo