Cross-Country Road Trip Reflections

Being back from this cross-country road trip has been bittersweet. There's a part of me that really misses the open road. The not knowing where we'd end up each day, what we would see, and who we would meet. I also deeply miss the people we met along the way. Kind, warm, true-to-nature, genuine, salt of the earth folks. Meeting people like this was something I'd long been craving. True, authentic connections. Who (and what) we (choose to) surround ourselves with impacts and greatly influences us in many ways. These types of connections are food for the soul.

This trip needed to happen for many reasons:

1. To help me remember... and reconnect to myself.

2. To reconnect the dogs and myself to *Nature*. This is a big one. For years and years, not a day went by where we weren't humping the trails and getting lost in the woods somewhere. Dirt under the paws. Hugging trees. Exploring all the senses. Leashes off (when it was safe and clear to do so). Dogs going at their own pace... doing their own thing.

3. To see and experience the West... finally!

4. To reclaim my sense of adventure.

5. To override all the fear, doubt, and worry....giving them the middle finger, proving them all wrong.... and actually live to tell the tale.

6. To break free from the rut I'd been living in day to day for way too long. Seriously. It's been Groundhog Day for the last decade plus.

7. To leave the house for the first time in years and take that much needed break (that was long overdue).

8. To reprioritize and reassess.

9. To meet new people and renew my faith in humanity.

10. To help me remember who TF I really am.

11. To be more present. Like... fully present.

12. To heal.

13. To loosen up the reigns and learn how to "let go".

14. To practice more allowing and less resisting. More trusting and less fearing.

15. And to return with new insights, perceptions, energy, and a renewed sense of *life*.

PackFit has been my identity for so long. In true Kimmie fashion, I'd turned tragedy into service and pain into a mission. It's this mission I've been working tirelessly to serve through everything that's been developed, created, and offered.

I've been working 7 days a week for well over a decade now and had a reached a point of extreme burnout long before I did anything about it. I was depending upon my day to day stress management and self care to keep me treading water (baths, meditation, nutrition, fitness, etc). Truth is, I was coasting on fumes for a very long time. Losing Chip...... just did me over. That was the final straw. There were several times throughout the trip I mourned for him. It would just hit me out of the blue ... in the most unexpected moments. I'm still in a state of disbelief he's permanently gone. Still grieving the fact I'll never see or experience him in his precious Chippie form again. The grief, the sorrow, the complete and utter despair haven't gone away.... I've just learned how to carry on with it.

Being back has been... disorienting. Literally. I feel "wobbly". Like ... a toddler just learning to walk. So many things are up in the air at the moment.

There were also some casualties along the way... my glasses (I can't see far away to save my life), Iuga yoga mat, favorite sunglasses, etc., but a ton of gains.

Attached are some pictures from the trip that really spoke to me. The one with the license plate that says "A1WAYS" came after I was crying about Chip. Crying for Chip. Crying to Chip. I'd asked him for a clear sign he was with me and that he could hear me. About an hour after, this car pulled out in front of me with this license plate.

There's another license plate pic of someone who'd cut me off and was speeding around. When I saw her license plate said, "OBHAVE".... I had to get a pic of it. Oh, the irony

There's a little towel in the shape of an elephant that was at the last Hampton Inn we stayed at in Ohio. So cute!

The two goats are the goats that were abandoned at a gas station in BFE Nevada. An adult goat and a baby. The adult was tied to the pole. I was pulling out of the gas station when I saw them... then circled back to ask the people in the gas station's mini mart if anyone owned them. It was 500 degrees out that day. Extremely hot. No one claimed them, and the owner nonchalantly said they'd been standing out there all day. Omg. I asked if there was police or some kind of outfit I could contact. "Nope, not in these parts." So, I got some ice water and brought it to them. They were really tame....great dispositions. Luckily, a middle aged couple was pulling out while I was standing there. They stopped and we struck up a conversation. They had just moved to that part and said animals are abandoned out there all the time. They were concerned for the goats, too. The woman had some fresh chard in the truck from a grocery run and offered it to the goats, which they gladly enjoyed. I had to hit the road but the couple said they'd make sure they were safe... even taking the goats home if they had to. They gave me a really good feeling, so I took their word for it. And the dogs and I continued on our merry way.

I'm keeping the GoFundMe open (https://gofund.me/00275e8e). Again, I'm not expecting handouts. I'm most happy to offer things of value as a token of gratitude for anything that's gifted. It'll take a very long time to pay off the thousands of dollars this trip cost, but .... you know what? I'm thankful. I'm thankful for what every single dollar has represented. This was something I absolutely had to do. Not just to welcome our new boy into the family, but for my heart, mind, and soul. The dogs needed this, too. We all did. And... you know what? I also got to know different sides of them, as well. They got to show me how they'd handle certain scenarios they'd never been put in before. They really did surprise me in many ways... and I'm thrilled to see how well they're doing with little Ronin. Far more tolerant than I would've expected.

Anyways, thanks for "taking this trip with us", and I sincerely hope you've enjoyed the photos, videos, and getting to know my little family a bit better.

Much love to you all.

(To my new friends at Bridgeview Winery, I miss you all! To those who've never heard of or tried their wine before, you must get your lips on some: http://www.bridgeviewwine.com. Red blends, Merlot, Chardonnay, Pinot Gris, Riesling, etc., and home to the *only* Pinot Noir I've ever loved)