My assistant and I laid out my stuff today. She called things off the list and I moved each item into the pile to pack. When I got almost everything in the pile, she looked at it and said, “How the hell are you going to carry all that on your bike?” I saw the pile different then her, “That’s two weeks worth of stuff and I think that’s pretty small!! Two saddle bags and a backpack.” She looked at me with a puzzled look on her face, “I don’t see how you’re going to get all that on the bike.”
I picked up the sleeping bag and the small military sack to stuff it in. “There is no way you can fit that into that small bag,” she said. “Watch me,” I laughed. After much stuffing and pushing, the sleeping bag FINALLY fit!! OK, one thing down!!
I then laid out all my clothes that I was taking on the floor. One by one, I rolled the items tight and placed them into the backpack. It’s like putting together a puzzle, each fits into the other, until everything is in place. “OK, I’m done with that,” I sigh. “You fit all those clothes into that backpack? It’s only half full!!” she said in amazement. “If you roll them tight, you can fit more inside,” I said. She peered into the backpack, “Your sure everything is in there?” I giggled, “Got it all, including the high heels!!”
The Journey starts in two days… I am excited!! Tomorrow, I will finish packing and strap it in place on my Dragon Slayer. I try not to think about Friday, when I will pull away from all that is familiar to me. Many of my friends will be here at 5:00 am to see me off!! I will carry each of them in my heart and they make me braver and stronger. Their belief in me and the Journey, inspires me to reach higher!! I know that the Journey represents courage to many of them; they are proud of me for forging ahead and facing my fears!! Sometimes I think, I’m doing this for them and other times I think, I’m doing this for me. Either way, I’m doing it!!
