Page 10 - October 2019
P. 10

THE DISTRICT BEAT










                        The Journey Is the Destination: Some Lessons Learned







                                                                        Emilie Taylor, DTM - District Director

















     My life has been hectic for several years now—          over 206,000 miles!
     and it has been tough to get away until Olallie             Since I protested against camping (Steven
     Lake.                                                   loves it), he compromised with a cabin. I was
         My husband, Steven, had scheduled some              excited, no more sleeping on boulders with

     quiet time—I mean real quiet time. We were              critters crawling into the sleeping bag to share
     going out on an adventure! An Olallie Lake              their warmth with me!  A cabin—we’ll talk about
     adventure! Pulling me away from responsibilities,       that later.
     planning, and activities was like giving a cat a            We travelled 80 miles east and south on

     bath.                                                   Hwy 224, then  46, then on Forest Service Road
         Me? I would be packing for days, with not           4690. From a two-lane road with passing lanes,
     an item forgotten for the trip. But not this time.      to two lanes overgrown with encroaching trees
     For once in a long while, I was going to let go         and no shoulders, to “Less Improved” asphalt, to

     and not do anything that required planning or           gravel, to “Dis Approved” (my term) road with
     thinking. An experiment so to speak. I would            rocks sticking up from the roadbed—waiting to
     pack a toothbrush and some clothing, then               connect with our transmission or oil pan, and
     sit in the car and let the adventure unfold.            potholes that could swallow a Fiat 500 and leave

     Steven would have to do all of the thinking and         no trace! An easy 80 miles to The Dalles and
     planning—and he did!                                    then a 3-hour hazardous trek to Olallie Lake.
         We decided to take our adventure in the                 Now for the metaphysics lesson—Be Mindful:
     off-road vehicle—our 1993 Honda Accord                  The Journey is the Destination.  The last 13 miles—

     Sedan. Yes, built for off-roading!  Five-inch road      blinking, distracted thought and lack of focus
     clearance and a hefty four-cylinder engine with         could result in unintended consequences. The








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