27 years ago - November 2002

27 years ago
cool, early-fall Saturday morning
a Plymouth Valliant with a full tank of gas
a stack of 8-tracks on the passenger seat
2 packs of smokes
and an open road between Virginia and my destination of Stratford, Connecticut

A handful of pills
and a six pack of Schlitz bottles to wash them down
“Who's Next” blasting on the speakers
as Daltry sings,
“Out Here in the Fields”
I pop a couple of white crosses to keep me alert
“I fight for my meals”
I take a Darvon to keep me mellow
“I get my back into my living”
I have a dime bag of pot to keep a buzz going
and a hit of blotter acid
which I already cut in half
and will take one half when I complete
the NY roadway puzzle
and approach the New England foliage

I was never much in school
choosing instead to let my mind drift
out the open window
and dream of the open road.
But I did remember the lessons
of “Fear and Loathing”

Now

27 years later
I find myself on that same stretch of road
A fall Saturday morning sunrise in Virginia
Paving the way for the final stretch
Of my drive from Georgia to Connecticut

A rented car
A full tank of gas
A stack of CDs on the passenger seat
My cell phone plugged into the cigarette lighter
A 20-ounce Caffeine Free Diet Coke
And pack of salt-free rice cakes in waiting

A handful of vitamins
And bottled water to wash them down with
“Who¹s Next” with bonus tracks
playing on the speakers
as Daltry sings,
“The Song is over”
I swallow a Coenzyme Q-10 to preserve cell membranes and blood cholesterol
“It¹s all behind me”
I take a Manganese pill for glucose tolerance
“I should have known it. She tried to find me”
I also pop a Zinc for my immune system, a Garlic tab for my cardiovascular system and a half dozen other vitamins to maintain generally good health.

27 years
from I-19 to I-46.
there have been many miles
on that journey

initially
when reflecting during my recent drive
I thought the contrast was one of a 19-year-old
who had time and an open road ahead of him
Vs.
A 46-year-old
who now faces a road winding closer to its end

But that is not really the case

The 19-year-old wanted answers
The 46 year old realizes the value in questioning
The 19 year old looked for paradise
The 46 year old realizes the value in searching
The 19 year old was a dreamer
The 46 year old realizes the value of dreams

The 46-year-old has always stayed true
to the ideals burning inside that 19-year-old,
although the fire has been tempered
with a realistic sense of what one person
can accomplish

I was happy to let the 19-year-old move on ahead of me on that road
I don¹t think I could have kept up with him
And I¹m sure he wouldn¹t be interested in what I had to say
But it was nice
For a brief period
To see him again
And revisit a road traveled long ago