Left later than I wanted, drove longer than I wanted. One curiousity--I apparently drove through a 4.0 earthquake and didn't even notice! Did notice the rush hour traffic on the north side of LA. Got lost trying to find the hotel where I planned to stay for the night so it was close to 9pm when I finally got to my room.
I'm glad to be on my way. That's imortant to me. And all things considered, it could have been worse. I may not have needed to drive quite so far today, but I'd rather go farther than necessary than find myself not getting to Austin in time.
It's funny. I had dinner with a friend on Monday and found myself telling her how, at one point in my life, I was paralyzed at the thought of driving somewhere I hadn't been before. Those of you who know about my cross country trek a year and a half ago, will be laughing at the thought! But I was--paralyzed, terrified, feeling as if it was something I couldn't do. I've come a long way since those days. And that's the thing. If there is one message I would like to share with others, it is that we can continuously grow and change and create the lives we want to have. We can become the person we want to be. We can do it at any age, too. Every time we face down a fear, we become braver. Each time we overcome a fear, we prove to ourselves that we are more capable than we thought we are. Even when our attempts don't work out perfectly, we gain information and the next time will have a better chance to succeed.
I'm glad I didn't notice the earthquake. I'm glad I wasn't scared by the rush hour traffic around LA--though I'll admit I wish I'd been able to miss it. Going 5 mph for an hour isn't my idea of fun. And even though I got lost looking for my hotel, I was able to figure out what to do and eventually get there.
My point is that things don't have to be perfect to be a success. Today was a success--despite all the glitches that occurred. I am a day and more than 400 miles closer to my destination.
Happy traveling, everyone!
April
