The Pear Tree Blog

“Every great journey begins with a single mistake.” Or so the saying goes.

Earlier this winter I had an unfortunate incident involving a cup of coffee and my lap top computer. The good news was that it was under warranty – but the closest shop we could find that would honour the warranty was in Kamloops. So, instead of paying a courier to transport the computer the two hours north, we decided to take a family day and drive it there ourselves.

I love driving – a declaration that no doubt stumps my mum and my grandma, both of whom had to endure bitter complaints about road trips both long and short. But I do, now, and if I wasn’t so insistent on playing with words for a living I’d probably be a long haul trucker or bus driver. There’s just something about the open road, the long drive, the eternal ribbon of asphalt, that never ceases to beckon.

The weather, when we embarked, was lovely. We were graced with a blue, spring sky that looks alluring but doesn’t bare the heat of summer. We stopped at the Starbucks near our place before officially launching out, to enhance the feel-good aura of it all with a grande something. Que the music (a round the world musical journey supplied by Putumayo).

The traffic was pleasantly light as we soared along the road, winding our way beside Wood Lake and Kalamalka Lake toward Vernon, and then beyond into the more wild countryside through Falkland, Westwold and Monte Lake.

When we got there, we dropped the computer off, ate lunch, played at the Riverside Park for a bit, and then piled into the car to return home. It may sound like a long way for so little, but we’re talking about someone who has, on more than one occasion, driven to Vancouver and back (more than four hours each way) for lunch.

It was a good drive. In addition to the music, we talked, looked for wild life (the most exotic thing we saw were some llamas – everything else was horses and cows), told stories and sang songs. Sometimes we just sat quietly and absorbed the landscape or contemplated thoughts such as how lucky I am to be married to a man that’s just plain amazing on so many levels, and to have two very small children who don’t whinge and cry like I did on trips that last more than 15 minutes.

I don’t believe in portable DVDs or MP3 Players or other technological tools that keep kids quiet but solitary. I think in 10 years my kids might hate me for that, but in 20 it will have paid off.

I was almost sorry to arrive at our destination. Given an unlimited supply of fuel, an absence of bills to pay and the right sort of company (say, that amazing husband and two kids I mentioned) I could have just kept going. It seems there’s always more to see – another corner to round, another road to cross. As soon as I find a way to make money from doing it (that doesn’t involve air brakes, 18 wheels or passengers), I think I could become one for the road.

Until then, I’ll just wait for my next excuse to travel. Hopefully it won’t involve a saturated motherboard.

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