Excerpts
Read a few small excerpts from the book.
Planet Earth
Although my travels were limited as a teenager, I still carried a latent wanderlust from my time traveling the world as a child. My impulses were reinforced by letters I received from my father when I was in elementary school. One such letter – addressed to me and my sister – read: “You two remember that life is big and beautiful and the universe is also big and beautiful, and so never get hemmed in like a bird in a cage. Get your two selves out of the confines of Lawrence, out of Kansas, out of USA, out of India, and out of the earth (that is to Jupiter, Venus etc.) and see and do things.”
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
We woke up in and donned our Rocky uniforms: grey sweatpants and sweatshirts with black skull caps. The girls were excited to see the “Rocky Stairs.” We’d watched the movie before our trip. Afterwards we discussed some of the lessons that could be learned: never giving up; recognizing potential in others; and winning isn’t everything. One of the things I’d forgotten was that Rocky lost the fight to Apollo Creed in a split decision. However, as my kids pointed out, he won because he did his best.
Excerpt #3
Cape Cod, Massachusetts
There are a lot of things to do in Cape Cod, but ice floe hunting is generally not one of them. In our quest to find a beach with suitable viewing, we stopped by a small visitor center operated by the National Park Service. The gentleman behind the counter appeared grumpy when we interrupted his afternoon reading and assumed an even fouler mood when we asked him where we might be able to see icebergs.
Icebergs, he admonished us, are large chunks of freshwater ice. Ice floes, on the other hand, are chunks of frozen saltwater. Being from Kansas, I wasn’t well-versed in the intricacies of glacial ice packs. Regardless, after a quick lecture we were provided with a map to Wellfleet, a small Cape Cod community where ice floes had washed ashore.
Excerpt #4
Grand Canyon National Park, Arizona
During the day the Grand Canyon is breathtaking. At sunset, it’s truly magical. An ever evolving palette of color, the canyon undergoes various permutations, depending on weather conditions and time of day. As the sun descends, dancing shadows tango with vivid frescos; shadows of marigold, vermillion, and scarlet flicker across the rugged peaks and valleys. The air cools and conversations hush. One is left to reflect on the enormity of the universe and their place on Earth.
Excerpt #5
Theodore Roosevelt National Park, North Dakota
We craned our heads towards the top of a hill and saw a group of buffalo. Soon we heard bellowing. Kylie and I got out of the car to get a better look. Two bulls began to challenge each other, crashing heads and trying to hook each other with their horns. After about a minute the vanquished bison was butted down the hill, in our direction.
It was surreal to have an enraged 2,000 pound animal careening our way. Frenzied and unruly, it resembled a wooly tornado, ready to eviscerate anything in front of it. As the bull regained its balance, its dark and unnerving eyes bore into us. Under the coarse, shaggy fur was a huge hump, composed of muscle. Although bison are bovids – members of the cattle family – this didn’t look like a tubby cow on the farm. It looked like a chiseled cow that had been pumping a lot of iron. An imposing pair of upward-curved horns rested on the mammal’s broad head, poised for action.
Excerpt #6
Anchorage, Alaska
Eklutna Lake wasn’t on our original itinerary and expectations were minimal. We were in for a pleasant treat. Emerging from the parking lot trail we were met with an Artic oasis. The sky had cleared. A brilliant sun illuminated the turquoise glacial waters, as clear and blue as an emperor butterfly. In the nearby peaks, forget-me-nots – Alaska’s state flower – intermingled with dogwood and fireweed. The soaring Chugach Mountains provided a majestic backdrop.
