Do you believe that everything that has happened in your life to this moment brought you to where you are? I believe that. If not, some of the adventures and decisions in my life would seem entirely nonsensical.
When I was a young man I decided to hitchhike from the New Mexico – Texas border where I was living and working, to my home state of Vermont. I did so alone. When I look back on that trip, I realize it was valuable in multiple ways. I will reflect on those throughout this multi-part Cornerstone Moment. But first, why don’t you go to an adventurous time in your life and reflect upon it. You may have already done so, but remember, we are never too old to learn, nor is any experience void of learning opportunities just because we have pondered it already.
On a cool September morning in 1974 my friend left me beside the highway just east of the New Mexico – Texas state line with a faded green Marine Corp “gunny sack” style canvas backpack that contained all of my belongings, except my Buick LaSabre, which I would soon sell to him at a bargain price. His last words to me that morning were “You are crazy! Good luck!”. I had done plenty of hitchhiking in Vermont, but never anywhere else. The adventure was about to begin, and the anxiety was rapidly building. Did you experience something similar with any of your big adventures? I would love to hear about it!
As I stood out on the highway with my thumb out and up, I began to have doubts. As time went passed and hundreds of vehicles passed me by, the doubts increased. Was it my long blonde hair and mustache? Was it my MAC Truck baseball cap? Or was it that heavy Marine Corp backpack that kept people from pulling over and asking me where I was heading? My friend’s words echoed in my mind… “You are crazy!“ I laugh about that now, but it wasn’t at all humorous at the time. Doubt tried to rain on my parade at that point, and I had to “suck it up” and keep smiling and putting that right thumb in the air. My backpack didn’t have padding on the straps, and it was already feeling heavy. The canvas was old and unforgiving. Did you hit a point like that in one of your adventures where you had doubts and felt heavily burdened?
Finally, a car pulled over and offered me a ride. It was a young man who seemed to feel comfortable with me. When I told him where I was traveling, he seemed perplexed and though he didn’t say so, he may have been thinking much the same as my friend back at the border. He then asked me to roll a joint for him and I soon found out just how comfortable he was with me. You see, I wasn’t particularly good at that job, even with two hands. He finally took it from me in disgust and rolled a perfect number with only one hand. I thought to myself, “Since you are so good at this with only one hand, why ask me to do it?” I thanked him and we said goodbye at the Big Spring, Texas exit. I was grateful for my first ride on my long journey back to Vermont.
After several hours of waiting in Big Spring, I thought about spending the $150 in cash in my pocket on a bus ticket. I was rapidly losing patience and confidence that I could travel all the way across America this way. And to make matters worse an on-coming Texas trooper spotted me and made a U-turn to come back and confront me. Fortunately, I was near a bridge and scurried under it and not in sight of the officer. He didn’t pursue me, and I escaped the consequences of illegal hitchhiking on a Texas highway. A bus ride seemed more appealing by the moment. Discouragement and some fear began dominating my conscience. I’m sure you have had those moments before.
Then, after what seemed like hours a pickup truck pulled over and offered me a ride. And it turned out to be the longest ride of the trip and the gentlemen who owned the vehicle was kind and generous with me. He bought me KFC chicken and served up a big batch of advice at the same time. Things like, “Get a haircut son! And shave that mustache and you will be more likely to get a ride.” He also let me drive the truck most of the way while he slept. At about 9 PM we made it to Magnolia, Arkansas. It was a 15-hour day. My new friend knew a motel owner, so he took me there to get a room. We woke his friends. Yes, they were sound asleep at 9 PM! I slept well that night despite my earlier anxiety. Day two of my trip would bring some eye-opening events and significant education. Day one turned out to be a whole lot more successful than I thought it would be and I found out that Texas really is one exceptionally large state! Oh yes, there was one other thing I learned that day – THE DREAM IS FREE BUT THE JOURNEY ISN’T.