I drive through the town where my sister attended college. I drive through the town where I attended college. I drive through the town where for many years I thought I would attend college. I drive past my high school make-out spot. I drive past a field we used to play paintball on. I drive past countless rivers, lakes, and streams that I've canoed, fished, or trapped. In short, I drive past a lot of memories.
A journey like this serves to remind not only what I'm working for but why. For me this drive is a journey. The highway is limbo. It is a space between the weight of my past and the unknown in my future. It is simple solitude, and it affords me freedom from the burden of focus.
I get to forget everything as I remember it all. It is an oblivion.
As much as the trip passes over me like waves, like it is happening to me, it is also an act. Driving a '95 Buick LeSabre with blown out shocks and struts takes some amount of attention, but that's not what I'm referring to. What I'm talking about is affirming the activity of the trip; driving is an experience similar to a performance.
I like to hit shuffle and crank the stereo. I like to roll the windows down and hang my arm around the driver's side door. I like to push the speed limit signs as far as they'll bend without breaking (or as far as that big, burgundy relic of a car will permit before it starts shaking [approx. 60mph]). I like to feel that I am still alive, still growing, still remembering where I come from for those four hours.
The point is to embrace the present, acknowledge the past, and hope for the future. Although there are others, the highway home is one of my favorite spaces that allows me to do this.
What about you? What space allows you to actively create harmony in your life? What is oblivion for you?
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