Once Upon a Road Trip Read Online Free PDF Page A

proof that people can change. And she’d found an odd eloquence in the notion that it had taken a physical heart condition to remedy an intangible heart condition. As idyllic as it might have been for her to know the man he’d recently become for the first seventeen years of her life as well — she knew him now. Better late than never.
    “I love you too.” Angie leaned in to hug his neck again. When she let him go she turned away and walked around the front of her car. She didn’t want any more second thoughts, and she knew seeing him standing there looking forlorn would make her hesitate. Taking a few moments to put on music and lay out the map of her route, she managed to pull out of the drive with only a quick wave and a glance in her rear view mirror. She was glad to have at least made it out of the driveway before her tears won out.
    After twenty minutes on the road, Angie reigned in her emotions and rallied her resolve. She needed all of her focus. It would take around twelve hours of driving before she reached her first destination in Ohio. That was plenty of time for her to reflect on why she was putting herself through this.
     
    For as long as she could remember, Angie had been slightly above-average — from her height and physical strength, to her grades, intuition, and artistic capacity. She was athletic, but lacked the innate prowess of a competitive athlete. She was bright, but not a genius. Talented, but not elite. Good, but not best. While growing up she’d entered all sorts of contests, from writing, to art, to science fairs — never achieving first or second place, but consistently given honorable mention. A pat on the head, and a “good girl, keep trying.” She wasn’t in the top ten percent of her graduating class, but she was in the top twenty — were that considered worthy of recognition. She managed to excel at an array of things, yet always fell short of exceptional in any one area. To her, above-average had become only a small, yet frustrating step up from the mundane. Mediocrity with benefits.
    Seeing her hope of one day becoming a writer in the light of realism, she knew above-average wasn’t going to cut it. If she was ever to go beyond entertaining the dream, she needed more under her belt than three years of reclusive internet storytelling —  more than college English and a few creative writing courses. She would have to offer something unique and authentic.
    It was this nagging conviction that had first sparked the idea of taking a road trip and experiencing more of the world first hand. If she couldn’t manage to be extraordinary by nature, she reasoned the next best thing was to attempt something extraordinary. She might even come across a more practical idea for a career path along the way.
    Assuming she made it back safely.
    Now that she’d nearly fallen apart while taking the first step on her journey, she had to wonder if she would have the strength to see it through to the end.
     
     
June 10,
And So It Begins
I beat the sun heading out this morning and drove straight east into it. The sky was totally clear, so I was treated to a lovely sunrise with all of those rich shades of red. My first stop was a rest station just outside of Madison, Wisconsin.  I’m holding up alright so far, but I might use my next gas stop to take a nap. I’ll be more than halfway by then.
A nice old trucker was kind enough to show me where the cars are supposed to park at this rest stop. Evidently, I parked on the end where the big rigs go and he was afraid I might get run over. I must have looked like a clueless idiot. *sigh* I’ll get it right next time. 
I found a swallowtail butterfly in the grass, nearly dead. I gave him some water droplets and sat him on the arm rest on the passenger’s side of my car. I named him Pete.
-I’m in Indiana right now. The nap helped me perk up. I’ve never been through this state before, but so far I’m convinced there’s nothing in Indiana. My road