Day Four Complete! You've crossed North America!

"Have you written the final entry in your road trip blog?"
"No."
"Well, you should . . . after you get some rest."

I actually don't remember a lot about the fourth day of driving. I do remember wonderful breakfast of banana pancakes at Eric and Kristin's and forcing ourselves to leave early because we didn't know how much snow had fallen to the south of Bloomington. I remember looking out the windows at the Smoky Mountains and really seeing them for the first time. I'd visited them and drove through them throughout my teenage life, but I didn't realize how beautiful they were until Sunday. I remember Todd driving a lot and being a total champ. I remember asking Todd if he recalled a time when we didn't spend all day driving. He laughed and said he didn't.

When I do something big in my life, I get worked up for it, do it, and then afterwards feel tired, empty, and often depressed. I felt that as soon as we stopped in Derek's driveway. My mission was complete; I got my brother to Hickory, North Carolina in as many pieces as we started, but for some reason I felt terribly sad. Even though Todd is a lot closer now and in the same time zone, I knew I was going to miss him a lot. I shed the foretold tears when I asked Dannon (Derek's son, who is working on being 2 years old, I think) to "take care of my brother".

I'm glad I got to drive with Todd across the US. Derek, Ginny, Todd, and I played Empire Builder, which is a board game where you build train tracks and drive trains across North America, after dinner on Sunday. Ginny asked us to show our route, and I pointed it out on the game board starting in Seattle, going through Boise, Salt Lake City, Kansas City, St. Louis, and then across and down to North Carolina. I was astonished as I traced it, thinking to myself "we did that? In four days? That's crazy!" There is one thing to know in your mind that from every road, you can get to almost every other road; when you demonstrate it to yourself, it is an entirely separate and more potent realization.

This is the last entry in the blog. It's been a struggle to type out entries after 12+ hours of driving, but I've enjoyed writing it. Hopefully you've enjoyed reading it as well. With all my mind, spirit, and body, I pray that Todd and Derek are able to do something great with Gopherwood Studios and sustain themselves full-time. They are reaching for a big goal - far bigger than driving across country. I hope that no matter what Derek and Todd remain friends and are able to laugh, smile, and enjoy each other's company even during the tough days before deadlines.