Road Trippin': If I Could Fly

Cinco De Mayo weekend. I can honestly say I had the best cup of coffee in my entire life in Merida, Quintana Roo, Mexico. Granted, I was staying in a 5-star hotel (nothing but the best, right?), but I tell ya...that coffee was the richest, smoothest, most amazing coffee ever. No cream or sugar even needed! Drank it "black", but it really wasn't black. It was a very dark caramel and the aroma itself, I swear, had finger-like wisps coming out of the cup, right into my nose, as if to say...

"Told ya."

I have yet to experience such a cup of coffee as the one I experienced in Merida. I may never travel down that way again, but the impact of that moment has stayed with me. Like so many things throughout my life's journey...

I don't do politics anymore...I'm bored to death by all of it. I know full well that I'm an ultimate enigma in Wyoming (driving a Prius), but as I'm road trippin', I do catch the "news" now and then. Liberals doing this, Conservatives doing that. Memes and GIFs poking at each other, back and forth. And here I am, as a Moderate (neither right, nor left), thinking:

You're ALL freakin' crazy!

As most of you know, I travel down to Utah occasionally for some "triple R" time. Relax, Regroup, Refocus. I get the "Relax" part from The Lotus Dawn. I get the "Regroup" time as I do the things that I want to do - dine, shop, sleep...maybe schedule in a casual date or two (hasn't been going so great these days, please don't ask). But to be honest...the "Refocus" time has been mainly on the road, driving to and from my destinations.

When I road trip, I fuel up and just go. I open the sun roof, I crank my music and just...well, go! If I want to stop, I'll stop. If I want to see someone, I'll let 'em know. But for the most part, road trip time is for me and me alone. Sure, there are places to go, people to see...but for me, it's the journey along the way that makes the trip. I may screech to a halt and capture a sunrise or sunset. I may stop at a historical landmark. I may have lunch at a greasy spoon in the middle of nowhere. But it's all mine. You can't do that in a plane, train or bus ("Um, pilot, could you land the plane at this wacky tourist trap in Nebraska?"). I love being at the wheel of my little Prius pod...and, at the wheel of my own life.

On my way to and from Utah this time, I had the "joy" of experiencing canyon-sized potholes, mainly between Green River and Fort Bridger. I remember driving these roads a few times this Winter, and know very well that the hugely-pocked asphalt was a result of snow removal. Yes, it has made a terrible mess of things, and I was almost thinking that the State of Wyoming should pay for any and all tire damages on I-80 (damn it all to hell!), but...then I thought about the snow removal workers, who were out there at all times of the day/night...doing the best they could to clear the way for all travelers and truckers. Then I felt bad, and had to stop for another espresso to ease my guilt.

Anyhoo...on my way back home, a certain song came on my playlist. "If I Could Fly" by Ocean Lab (see below). Music is so powerful. This song played between Farson and South Pass, and as I passed historical landmarks such as "Wyoming Women's Suffrage Pathway: Home of the Women's Vote"..."South Pass City"..."Atlantic City"...and yes, the beautiful scenic stop of Red Rock Canyon...my thoughts swirled around:

There are no walls out here. Hell, there's pretty much nothing out here but sagebrush, antelope, deer and a lot of wind...and a lot of road kill...

There are also many moments on my road trips where I've set the cruise control and find myself "flying". Where nothing else in the world matters. Politics, religion...all the problems of the world dissolve. Arguments, debates, "news"...mean absolutely nothing.

Because when it comes right down to it, none of that shit matters. You have someone in your family dying of cancer or other illnesses, and everyone is up in arms about borders, a "wall". You have a friend that is suicidal, and all the entertainment media can talk about is what Kim Kardashian is wearing. There are so many problems, so many bottlenecks...and the best that anyone above us can do is turn a blind eye and silver-tongue us that things can get better. Then they don't...

Maybe it's time we deal with the "walls" that have already infected this United States of America for decades. Political, social, cultural, mental, emotional, religious, spiritual walls. Prison walls. A physical wall isn't going to cure anything; it is the core attitudes that have to change before any successful change. I sincerely believe that the political parties of the USA are destroying this nation and the visions our Founding Fathers intended for us. They must be rolling over in their graves...

Well, that said...my chile relleno from Rosa's Cafe in Ogden was delicious. It's nice to be home. I see my little seedlings are doing well and are aching for a replant. I have some unpacking to do, laundry to do...and a lot of thinking to do after my R, R & R.

It's not Merida coffee, but...it is coffee. And that's a good thing.

Bottoms up!

If I Could Fly

A thousand people on the street
The rain is trying to drown my feet
The cold bites into every bone

The solemn faces pass me by
A gray veneer on buried smiles
A crowded train to take me home

If I close my eyes a minute
See a world within a minute
Standing on the road
my wings to take me high

If I could fly

See the world beneath me
Feel as though I'm set free
Oh, if I could fly

A simple smile can change a day
An understanding look can say
I know exactly how u feel

But we have learned to build our walls
so very strong and very tall
for fear of what the world might steal

If I close my eyes a minute
See a world within a minute
standing on the road
my wings to take me high

If I could fly…

Copyright Ocean Lab “If I Could Fly”