Thin Places, Thick Places Day 2

Thin Places, Thick Places

Day 2.

PREPARATION and ADAPTATION

“It is not the strongest of the species that survives, nor the most intelligent that survives. It is the one that is most adaptable to change. (a quote credited to Charles Darwin, but the origins are in dispute)”

How do we prepare and pack for an interstate move AND an extended international trip at the same time, and WHAT were we thinking (insert eye-roll)?

As it pertains to big and vast experiences there’s the ideal and there’s the reality. 

Ideally, we would be so inspired and gleefully motivated by living in Cape Cod that some Packing Fairies would hop-to and explode with productivity. Ideally, the idea of adventuring around and through other countries across the world would be so inspiring that we could just strap backpacks to our backs, get up and go, and with blissful meditation would become one with with other cultures. 

Sorry to burst your bubble. Ideal is a concept in film and novels. That’s why I want to be a writer and director. You can control the story. 

Here’s where the rubber meets the road: HOPE for the best, but plan for the worst. Yikes. That sounds so age-appropriately dour. 

No Packing Fairies remain (although we did have invaluable help from Amy Martinez and her lovely sister…they have an amazing business that helps people like us), and I am faced with an enormous task of travel with THREE KIDS.

I shall not FALTER or FALL into a stew of overwhelmed tempestuous bollywaggins! 

Here’s the solution: PREPARATION and ADAPTATION.

Pack, pack, pack, sort, sort, sort, PURGE, PURGE, PURGE!!! Thinning out belongings helps, when faced with a move. Still working on it, but in process. Just don’t touch my rebounder. That goes wherever I go.

For our big trip, preparedness is king. Anyone who knows me knows that I LIVE IN THE MOMENT. Preparing is not my strength. YET, I’ve had to adapt to the possibility of complete and utter chaos in the absence of preparedness. 

When bringing three children overseas for an extended period of time, there are many approaches to preparedness. Here’s mine:

- spend weeks gather information about destinations and bind the pages into a “itinerary guide”

- trust no technology and write out all pertinent travel itinerary information

- bring our own snacks on planes (cheaper and better for paleo people)

- bring essential oils and alternative health immune-boosters

- bring non-technology fun (cards, rubix cube, etc…)

- bring technology fun (NOOK…so much cheaper than i-anything. Kids lose things, hey)

- JOURNALS and colored pencils

- umbrellas

- a week’s worth of clothes and washing “stuff” (should last for 5 weeks, right? OR, we could just buy amazing clothes from all the amazing countries…oh, there’s a budget…washing stuff will work)

- color copies of passports

- tissues for, anything

- deodorant wipes, for everything

- toiletries (ALL UNDER 3 OZ…because I’m not willing to surrender my fancy anti-aging everything)

VOILA! That almost covers it. We have the assorted everything else like adapters, toiletry bags, blah, blah, blah. 

PREPARATION and ADAPTATION. Things will NOT go as planned. That’s what I can expect. But at least I’ve got some yummy snacks and cards that we can play. That should cover it.

To be continued…