To Michigan, Part 1

Tuesday morning we headed out from the Springs, our car piled so high and riding so low that we decided at the beginning not to make any u-turns or go over any speed bumps. We took 24 to 71 to 76 on our way out of Colorado for a change, having made the trip up I-25 one to many times. Garran decided to let us know about 2 hours in that he’d forgot his wallet. That was fun, thinking about having to turn back around, then our walkie-talkie squawked back, “Just kidding.” Those walkie-talkies were the best for sure. I reflected on leaving behind the beautiful state of Colorado. What I decided that I would miss the most was the wildness of it. There were so may wildflowers just hanging out and grasses blowing in the wind. In my mind I combined the carefree of the meadows and the steadiness of the mountains, topped off by warm sun and clear blue skies. Not much else can compete. But then I remembered that I am always in the best place when I am where God wants me to be, regardless of how much splendor it possesses or awe it evokes. There truly is a time and a season for everything. I praised God, as we drove past the fields, for the time He allowed me in Colorado to be reminded of His majesty.

Later, as we passed the border of Colorado and made it through Nebraska, Iowa came into view. As far as I’m concerned, Iowa is not my friend. Also, time slows down when you’re trying to drive through it, making the trip seem to take forever. We were planning on stopping just outside of Des Moines to camp. Well, our time was slower because of our car and a later start, so it was beginning to get late. Then, it started to rain, and Rain, and RAIN. After that, the pouring and the pounding. Then came the semis, blazing past at lightening speed, like they had night vision and it wasn’t raining in their lane. I couldn’t see the lines, or the road, or past the front of the car. We couldn’t pull over because we’d get hit. I had to keep driving. By this point, my knuckles are white and I’m hunched forward like an tiny old lady, trying to see out of the window, wipers whirring. I am pretty sure I whimpered every time a semi would appear in my side mirror. And then, it got worse, not letting up. Payton was trying to help keep me on the road, trying to get me to drive on the rumble strip to keep my place, which was a great idea except that I was panicking and couldn’t see and therefore couldn’t think, only imagining the side of the road to be a cliff. As a train of three semi trucks blazed past, I started crying, my eyes becoming like my windshield. I was sure I was going to wreck or send us into a ditch and we’d be stuck forever. I haven’t been that scared in a while. We finally pulled of into a gas station. The attendant told us that we could outrun it after 25 miles. It took 109 miles before that happened. We passed our exit for camping in the middle of the storm, being outside was out of the question! We drove all night, stopping at 2:30am to sleep for 2 hours. We did some rotating so that none of us was on the road for too long. I was the backup driver for Payton and Garran because they liked to drive. I like to sleep in the car, except that I don’t really fit very well, and therefore, don’t sleep well. The rest of the trip was mostly uneventful. There was more rain when we entered Michigan. It was like child’s play after Iowa. Our breakfast consisted of crackers, cheese, and pepperoni. The water was nasty the whole way in comparison to Colorado. So, we were going through “water shock”, so thirsty, but not wanting to drink it. It was pretty funny when Payton would sniff the water and ask where it was from.

We rolled into Jackson around lunchtime. Our car was sooooo low at this point, it was scary. The nice folks at NTBI helped us unload all of our stuff, which was awesome since we were running on 2 hours of sleep. We had planned on “some” rain, but not 2-3 hour downpours, so all of our car-top container were soaked. We had to drain them. I had bagged most things that could get ruined, but three inches of water made its way inside. Both of my cookbooks got wet and all of my recipes, our external hard drive stopped working, our printer cord is dead, and a few other things. After setting things out to dry, we headed to Dearborn Heights to visit my family! Well, there’s so much more to tell, but that will have to wait until later.