Monday, July 2, 2012

'Have a Magical Day'

Today was a surreal day. It was the first day we didn't ride our bikes, let alone look at our bikes. Last night after spending a wonderful afternoon with my family and friends, my mom took our bikes in her van as we stayed in Gainesville. Unlike every other morning, we showered! Then, instead of getting on our bikes and riding, we got into a car. We drove the equivalent of 2 biking days. Brian, Robyn, and I all car pooled to Disney World, something else that was surreal. We end this amazing journey of self-inspired, self-powered, and self-challenging feats at a place that is almost the polar opposite of what we did for the past month. Robyn loves Disney, so her excitement grew on me, and Brian helped fuel the final 'rest day' (or bonus day). We spent the day buzzing around people, waiting in line, getting 'fast passes' and taking part in what the amusement park had to offer.

Throughout the day, I couldn't help to think, 'I am going back to Seattle tomorrow.' How bizarre.

So, here we are. This adventure, that evoked many emotions, is now coming to an end. We are going to start new adventures in Seattle, with different perspectives, different views on life. Personally, I am left in this state of awe. I am so grateful to have a friend (Robyn) who stuck it out through the end, who let me plan a map and never questioned it -and never complained when we had to bike extra miles because of a wrong turn, who supported me when I had low moments, and saw my excitement and helped build upon that. There was a moment, when I was within earshot, that Robyn was explaining what I do for a living (repair musical instruments). Hearing her, it reminded me that, yes I have an awesome career that makes and impact in others' lives. So often I would get wrapped up with a day-to-day routine, that I forget those aspects. I am also so, so thankful for the friends and strangers we met along the way, that went out of their way to treat us to a drink, meal, place to crash, so our journey would be a little easier. I know I said it before, but I am humbled from the kindness of others. That has been a huge impact on me from this trip.

I also want to take a second to thank our parents for being so supportive - this had to have been a journey that hopefully excited you all, but ultimately I'm sure it worried you as well. Thanks for listening to our stories of triumph, as well as our blurbs of whines. Hopefully, you relish in the fact that you raised two girls that had an idea, planned, had bumps in the road (literally and figuratively!), and completed a journey that we will take with us for the rest of our lives.

A special thanks to my mom for being so, SO helpful. You went out of your way so much to get us where we needed to be, feed us, house us (plus two more!). I probably don't say it enough, but I love ya!

I leave you all with a few photos of our last biking day and our day at Disney. Another thanks to Brian for going out of his way to bring us a feast while camping, take us to Disney, and spend your time hanging out with two people who can only talk about what went down in the past month.

"Forward, not backward."
-M

2 comments:

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  2. Welcome back to Seattle, Marie and Robyn!

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