THe Kindness of strangers
This past week has been a challenge. I stayed in NC with the pups and the camper at various wineries as a Harvest Host. The scenery was stunning, it was lovely to visit with my family, and I was pleasantly surprised that I enjoyed the local wine so much. The area is right off the Blue Ridge Parkway and is truly a hidden gem. However, my stay presented a few difficulties. The camper, in the heat without electric hook ups was too hot for the dogs, thus pet sitters were an essential part of our trip. Each day I would hook up the camper, drive about 45 minutes around the mountains to another winery, unhook the camper to go meet my family, and that was our daily routine for a week. I did meet the loveliest people at each of the wineries, the staff, the owners and other folks who were also Harvest Hosting.
On my final day I stayed at Wellspring Mountain. After days of driving the camper up and down mountain roads, trying to thwart off mini panic attacks and that voice in my head asking, “are you nuts”, “you are crazy for doing this”, etc., I made my way to Wellspring. I was tired. As I turned the corner onto a gravel road, it started pouring. I made my way down the gravel road, that turned into a gravel hill, it was narrow, uphill, wet and very rocky. My heart was beating out of my chest. The directions indicated to enter the gate at the end of the road. I hit a small fork, a gate just to the right and signs indicating “private property” to the left. I went through the gate, until the driveway came to an abrupt stop ending at a new home being built. I was surrounded by red clay with not much room to turn around. My heart started beating faster, questioning how the hell I was going to get out of this situation. I made a 50-point turn with the little camper and headed back out and further up the hill. Low hanging branches were hitting the kayak, the camper (and the car), were bouncing everywhere, and I could feel the urge to cry building up in my body. It was the first day on this road trip that I started wishing I could go home.
As soon as I hit the top of the hill, I was greeted by my host Thomas, who had his arms stretched wide, with a giant smile and he said “welcome”! He was standing in the pouring rain and then proceeded to guide me around to my campsite, he moved away branches that were getting snagged by the kayak and guided me to my resting space. His wife Terrie helped me settle in, showed me around the property and we talked about the beautiful mural painted on the wall. I felt so welcomed by their warm-hearted kindness, and it reminded me that help is always going to be available. I don’t have to do everything alone.
After NC I headed to NJ to visit my long-time childhood friend Melissa. I checked into my campsite and had to back in the camper. I was starting to stress a bit, armpits were sweating, tears were welling up as I just couldn’t get it in quite right. Then a smiling stranger named Don appeared. He and his wife were camping behind me and were admiring my cute, retro camper. He asked if I needed a hand and in a matter of minutes, he guided me right into the spot. His wife came by to introduce herself and they offered me a hand in getting the camper set up. The kindness of strangers warms my heart.
Since I’ve been on the road for a few weeks now, driving great distances I need to have the wheel bearings on the camper checked and packed before I continue my journey. The local tire shops and auto garages were not able to fit me in during my stay. My friend Melissa’s husband Johnny went out of his way to help me find someone, a friend of his, willing to drive 45 minutes to help me out for the price of beer and a bike ride.
I am overwhelmed with gratitude for the lovely pet sitters who took care of my pups while I visited my family. I feel an abundance of love and kindness for the strangers who have helped me thus far on my journey. And I feel proud, of what I’ve overcome and managed to do on my own, despite the fear and anxiety I continue to feel.
My friend Melissa and fellow yogi, reminded me that the universe always provides, I just need to be open to receiving.
