Saturday, February 28, 2009


Months now have passed, a bit of perspective.
There were many things anticipated about this journey, what it would be about, what it would be for, what would be learned. Overwhelmingly these expectations proved to be inadequate, inappropriate and naive. Sure, we learned about water quality and river towns, sure we learned about wild edibles and what plants don't work well to weave with. Personally however, this trip was about time, about learning to notice nine months pass down almost to each minute, and learning about each other. It is an amazing thing that Hannah and Lindsey did this thing together, it is amazing the depth with which we learned and became comfortable with each other. Our reliance on each other was so thorough that there were no quarrels ended by going to one end and the other of our tiny home, the situation demanded resolve and calm at whatever cost. We know now how dependent we are on others though we tried our best to hold our own, how grateful one can be for those things offered without any prompt and how sometimes selflessly generous to allow others to give. And the river has shown us these things. These things about ourselves as much as about itself. This river while determining how and where and why Bernadette moved and stopped, gave us this great gift, freedom and exposure. These things we have won, this project of time, of nine months, of six hundred and fifty or so miles, of space, of patience and resilience, of beauty and awe, things we struggled to not take for granted exposed to those magical moments of vacation constantly but at the cost of aesceticism and instability.
Now, warm by a fire in a home i can decorate and work on, i value the prospect of building something permanent, working on the land and learning slowly what it has to offer.
So in response to repeated urging, this is my sign off, my declaration of victory. We did an amazing thing and I have changed forever because of it.

lindseyp.