Sunsets and Dirt Roads and Bright Ideas
“Go outside. Don’t tell anyone and don’t bring your phone. Start walking and keep walking until you no longer know the road like the palm of your hand, because we walk the same roads day in and day out, to the bus and back home and we cease to see. We walk in our sleep and teach our muscles to work without thinking and I dare you to walk where you have not yet walked and I dare you to notice. Don’t try to get anything out of it, because you won’t. Don’t try to make use of it, because you can’t. And that’s the point. Just walk, see, sit down if you like. And be. Just be, whatever you are with whatever you have, and realise that that is enough to be happy. There’s a whole world out there, right outside your window. You’d be a fool to miss it.”
Okay. So.
There is this road - a road which I have driven past on the way home for the past four years almost everyday. And almost everyday I say to myself. “hmmm… that is such a pretty little road”, and then I am past it and that is that.
Until this year. This year, the farmer planted canola on both sides of the road. For some reason, this changed everything. I would drive past the road and think to myself “hmmm… I wonder”…. echoing the above quote; “there is a whole world out there…(and)… you would be a fool to miss it”. A picture started to form, and I knew I needed to get it out of my head - but there was one small problem…. I am short and I needed to be tall. Unfortunately for me, I do not have any magic beans in my pocket to help me grow beanstalks to climb, (which seriously sucks). But in hindsight is probably a good thing because I am sure the farmer would not love to have his canola trampled by giants. Even though that would be a cool, once in a lifetime story… I guess not everyone likes to have fun.
So on to a more conventional plan b.
A ladder.
Albeit, pedestrian - but would allow me to be tall.
Great. But how to get the ladder to my road, as it will not fit in my car.
The truck, then.
Which (inevitably) led me to the following conversation in the kitchen between Cody and I.
For some of you that do not know us - this conversation has played out between us for years, about many different things - but chiefly me thinking up a (what I see as) a bright idea, and Cody (probably thinking)… “well this will end in disaster”
Me: *sashays into the kitchen - putting on what I think is a cute (and innocent) smile*
Cody: *looks up from his phone, leaned up against the counter. Well, let’s be truthful here, he gave me the eyes over the glasses look. For which I am sure many people would naturally stop right there and decide their question was actually stupid, and either walk away or find a less stupid question. In fact - I have seen it happen many a time. I however, have not yet learned this particular lesson*
As an aside - Cody has perfected this look
Cody: *not even giving me the opportunity to speak, ignoring my cute and innocent smile says*… “What?”
Me: “Well, you see, I have this idea and I was wondering if we could take the truck….”
Cody:*not once has his expression changed, nor has he blinked, shifted or moved any part of his body… just continues to look over his glasses, leaned up against the counter - staring*
Me: “it will be fun, you see I have this picture in my head, and it’s of the road.. because well, canola! You know that road - where the house blew up? It’s a dirt road. But I need to be tall, but at sunset, so I got to thinking and this idea popped into my head where we could just take the truck! I thought we could take this little ladder, and then I could stand on it in the back of the truck. But we have to go tonight because, well the canola is yellow - and the sun is pretty. But like, at 9 pm though, not now. Because, the light”
Sometimes, my eloquence and ability to speak with clarity and acuity actually stuns me.
Cody: *blinks twice*
Me: *smiles wider*
Cody: “Well, let’s take the big ladder then”
In all fairness, sometimes my bright ideas have not turned out so bright, such as when I thought a walk down the road would be nice, I was positive that the clouds would not come our way. Well, they did, and let’s just say - we don’t really talk about that adventure.
Anyways.
We get to the road, and set the big ladder up in the back of the truck - because as you know, I needed to be tall and lacked magical beans. Cody drove up and down the road for me while I took pictures and donated a pint or two of blood to the plight of the mosquito.
I love these pictures.
