It’s true! I have been ‘on the road’ once again, this time scooping up my son Noah and driving 14 hours from Vancouver to Edmonton to spend the weekend with my lovely friends Darlene and Duke. It was a ‘whim’ which means literally from one day to the next I called Darlene asking if I might spontaneously drop over for the weekend (Yes! Of course, Yes!) tossing a vintage turqouise cooler into the back of the car filled with sandwiches and hummus, falafal chips, apples and bottles of water…towels (for bathing in the mountain lakes and hot springs at Jasper National Park) camera’s (my last package of expired Time Zero film) and lots and lots of music naturally. Oh, and dark chocolate covered cranberries as well ~ I refuse to embark on a roadtrip without chocolate. (You can see a little gallery of photo’s from my trip here….)

“The air was soft, the stars so fine…that I thought I was in a dream.”

- Jack Kerouac, On the Road ~

Every now and then all these emotions begin to fill up to overflowing in my heart and a roadtrip through the mountains is just what a girl needs to bring her back to herself and allow inspiration to run rampant ‘neath abounding, billowing, most spacious skies. We woke up at the first breath of dawn and hit the road which graced us with the most ethereal morning light through the mountains and a stunning glimpse of the moon and sun passing over one another in one blinding moment of startling glimmering magic.

And for just a moment I had reached the point of ecstasy that I always wanted to reach, which was the complete step across chronological time into timeless shadows, and wonderment in the bleakness of the mortal realm…”

~ Jack Kerouac, On the Road ~

Weaving past jade green lakes and mist shot mountains, fields painted with splashes of golden yellow cradled with undulating landscapes, I experienced visions and wanderings as my soul dialed back to myself once again. I rolled the windows all the way down, inhaling the hypnotic mountain air and let me tell you this is invigorating tonic to behold. If you ever have the chance to embrace this euphoric, saxophonic drive I urge you to do so ~ you will be blissed out and trust me, I never use that word lightly ~ and oh! make sure you stop at the hot springs in Jasper national park ~ soak your sorrow and aches away in those pools of rejuvenation and then fling your body into the ice cold pools for a splendid shock of awakening only to slip once again into the heat of the detoxifying baths. Yes! Do it! The spiritually uplifting road to the hot springs is a wonder of re~emergence all by itself and my son Noah kept a keen lookout for bears.

‘we be jammin’ ~ Darlene and I jammin’ away in a stream of consciousness rhythm on the djembe drums ~such pure joy!!! (gorgeous photo by Duke Paetz)

One of the serendipitous moments of the weekend with Darlene ignited when a friend popped over with a brand new Djembe drum (a surprise gift for his wife) and he very generously allowed me to try it out with some very fine coaching tips from Duke. I am now officially smitten with drumming and determined to find myself a drum of my very own which I will bring up to Lizzie’s retreat in a few weeks to inspire everyone else by the evening campfires. I love to share my new enthusiasms and excavations with anyone who will put up with me.

A little link lovin’ to share ….the four with some fabulous shots…words to shoot by...just in case you want some djembe lessons FREE online….aaaaaaand some delicious road music by the poet of the heart and soul himself….