November 18, 1996

Returning to America doesn't feel like the end I thought it would. In fact, it isn't. Once there, we'll be buying a car, finding a new apartment, finding new jobs. It will be another beginning. We're talking about our time in America as part of our trip. We already have dreams of South America, more of Africa, China, Russia. Maybe we'll never settle down. The whole world will be our home. The words we heard from a 78 year old man in the streets of Kathmandu are true for us. He said, "Travel while you can because no one's getting out of this life alive." John and I intend to get out of this life as much as we can. We've found that learning about different cultures, meeting different people, experiencing different things is what makes us grow.

Are we different now than when we left sixteen months ago? People ask us that, and I wondered the same thing when we were pulling away from the curb in our Vanagon two summers ago. Would we be changed by this? For one thing, things don't hold the same meaning for us. We've lived without a lot of things and not missed them. I thought I'd miss my own bed and I didn't. I thought I'd miss cooking in my own kitchen and I didn't. I thought I'd miss all those little knickknacks that make a house warm and comfortable, but I didn't. We've substituted things with something far more valuable - stories, memories, and experiences.

In addition, this trip has given us confidence that we can handle the unknown. It isn't scary to imagine being in an area where we do note understand the language, where we do not understand the customs. I suppose this trip has made us more adaptable. It's hard to describe how different I feel. I'm never going to ever let the rat-race catch up with me again; I'm not going to get stressed about some of the things I used to. After being away from all that for so long, I've been able to step back and see that a lot of that doesn't matter to who I am. Stepping back has given us both a chance to question what really matters and to refocus our lives. But on the other hand, I'm still the same Janet. I thought I might be totally different and I'm not. I've just had time to let me be me. That's kind of nice after so many years of running on other people's timetables, and other people's office clocks. One thing is sure. We are definitely less stressed than we used to be and we intend to stay that way.

We recently got E-mail from someone planning a trip across America. He's all set to go; the van is ready; he's got the maps and the itinerary; he just hasn't been able to make that first step. I say 'go for it'. Getting there is the hardest part. Once you take that first step and do that one thing you've always wanted to do (whatever that may be), you'll wonder why it took you so long to get out of the door.