Nashville or Bust

We’re married. We’re parents of three great kids. We both work outside of the home to earn our keep. We’ve been in lockstep for the past two decades, building something that is safe, comfortable, solid and seemingly natural. At least to us. We’re grateful for all of these things. But… (there’s always a ‘but’, isn’t there?) we recognize there are times when we need to get out. Escape. Run away from the circus to join the reality, if only for 48 hours.

When we can, we now plot a road trip. Even if just on paper, the road trip is letting us become a bit more creative in how we approach our day-to-day as well as shape our future. Ever since our groundbreaking excursion to Nashville in 2008, we’ve become two kids in cahoots — scheming, dreaming, trying to figure out when in Sam’s Hell we can break away, where it is we’d like to go and more importantly — why.

Many of our trips are still in the fantasy stage. Current family life, responsibilities and outside schedules tend to keep us grounded. And contrary to the ‘expected American norm’ our thoughts are not of romantic beaches, ski chalets and golf courses. Together, we realized we want to discover the common bits of Americana in the hopes of honing the true nuggets of our selves. As we currently do everything scripted post college graduation, we now wrestle the expectation to conquer and succeed with the desire to just live and simplify. Dusty roads. Humble meals. Genuine conversations with people. Laughter. Wholeness. These are the things scribbled on the coffee-stained road map. And when opportunity allows, the things we gratefully experience, savor and share. — Jacqui