It’s been four and a half years since my last proper road trip. “Proper” as in just me and my car, plus the bare necessities required to cook and sleep wherever I happened to find myself. Most importantly, aside from one scheduled speaking gig, I had no agenda on that trip, no end date or even a route to stick to. I was on the road for nearly four weeks.
That much time on the road would have felt like nothing to my 20s self, who spent months-at-a-time traveling. I never have that much time off work at a stretch these days, but I’m not sure the time would make a difference anyway; we cut our four-day New Year’s road trip short to come home early, not because we don’t love the Far North, but because we love being home even more.
Last week, when I’d rather have been anywhere other than moving Home from one house to another in seemingly-endless short drives, I happened upon two videos that brought that big road trip energy back in a major way:
I love how they each evoke so differently that sense of a road trip’s freedom and independence and vulnerability and power and space to contemplate and just be. I also love the contrast of Maggie’s 20-something urgency compared to Sarah’s 30-something reflective mellow. I’m probably projecting. Nevertheless… yay for women taking to the road alone, may this tradition persist. One of these days I’ll get back out there.
Elizabeth Ü 