And We are off...

I'm exhausted. We have been going and going for days on end - one event, adventure and obstacle after another. Bags so heavy we wonder if we brought too many of our material goods. Yet, we haven't even left the Seattle airport. After nearly two months of preparation we are sitting, half asleep at Sea-Tac. Mindy, half asleep on the floor, has found a double use for her new Italian leather hand bag, a pillow. I, nearly half asleep in a chair that is simultaneously too narrow and too hard, am looking forward to this next great adventure in my life. Luckily, I get to share this one expedition with someone else. In this nearly empty wing there is only the sound of coffee brewing from one of the few stores open, the echo of footsteps and dragging suitcases. Mindy's head lies just inches away from a very drab 70's inspired linoleum. Oddly, this uninspiring scene is the stage from which we are off to a great adventure.

We have left family, friends, and the familiar for the unknown and the chance to do something that, at any other point in our lives, we would not be able to do. This is something that only a few get to partake in and I am happy to say that I am one of them. It is a rich life and one worth taking advantage of at every opportunity. Even in light of the complete chaos that was the preparation for this trip and the fact that we are going to miss parts of the lives of a few special newborns and our families, sitting here now waiting for our 1:10am flight to Bangkok I think we can say the timing for this trip has proven to be perfect. Perfect because it is an adventure and adventures are always perfect. Yes, we have left our parents and friends behind, but like Mindy said, "Why should we be sad? We are going on an adventure." When she said that I was reminded of one of my favorite sections from Walt Whitman's "Song of the Open Road":

Allons! whoever you are, come travel with me!
Traveling with me, you find what never tires.
The earth never tires;
The earth is rude, silent, incomprehensible at first—Nature is rude and incomprehensible at first;
Be not discouraged—keep on—there are divine things, well envelop'd;
I swear to you there are divine things more beautiful than words can tell.
Allons! we must not stop here!
However sweet these laid-up stores—however convenient this dwelling, we cannot remain here;
However shelter'd this port, and however calm these waters, we must not anchor here;
However welcome the hospitality that surrounds us, we are permitted to receive it but a little while.

Along the way things will, no doubt, have there tough times: two strong headed people travelling together thousands of miles away from everything we know. Then again, like the drab empty scene we currently sit in great adventures start from the most unlikely spots and have the potential for great adversity. No doubt all travellers start from the same spot as we.

We will be back at some point to partake in the hospitality of our friends and family soon enough. We will have more adventures to share with you all and we look forward to the many more adventures that we have missed of yours while we were away. Keep in touch and check in every now and then.

-Scott