Heading Back to Colorado Part 2

After breakfast and repacking the car, mom and I headed for the nearest Starbucks we could find. We had to have coffee for the car ride, it was imperative for both of us. The day was already beginning to warm up, even though it was November, so I opted for an iced coffee. After delaying our departure from town by 45 minutes, we were back on the road and headed through town and toward Boulder City.

We made our way down Tropicana Ave. past the airport and UNLV through the housing district. We were as far from I-15 as I had ever been in Vegas. Most of my trips had been down Las Vegas Blvd with all of the major hotel chains called, "The Strip." I had driven through several times coming and going to Colorado before. I had even been to town for two weddings (my grandparents being one). We travelled down the road to I-515 and headed toward Henderson and Boulder City.

I-515 ended at the south end of Henderson and dumped on state hwy 93 to Boulder City. We passed through Boulder City and past the turn off for Lake Mead. We were heading to The Hoover Dam. Neither mom not I had ever been to the dam and we were both excited to check it out. We found a turn off with a great view of Lake Mead and stopped for a quick picture. Then we headed to the entrance for the dam. The rangers were checking each vehicle for explosives to protect the dam. Mom and I got really worried that they were going to make us unpack the entire car to check it.

The ranger came to the door and asked a few questions looking in the back the entire time. We knew he was wondering how he was going to check for explosives in this vehicle where you could hardly see any open space. The whole time I was praying he would take us a no threat and let us go through without having to unpack the entire car. It would take mom another several hours to put it back together if he did. I really think that having mom (a blond) driving, he felt we were of little to no risk and graciously let us through after learning we were coming back from my cancer surgery. We told him we were taking life by the horns and doing things we never would have done before, like seeing part of our country's national parks.

We slowly drove through following all the other visitors to the parking structure built for the slew of visitors passing through each year. Mom and I grabbed our purses and cameras and headed out to see this engineering wonder. We did a few things such as the observation deck and walking across the dam and back. We took pictures at prime spots like everyone else and acted like true tourists. Once we had done our due, mom and I headed for the car and continued driving eastbound across the dam. Half way across, you enter into Arizona. So we continued our trek toward Colorado.

Mom and I had a few snacks in the car with us, so we kept moving toward Flagstaff for our next night's sleep. We got to Kingman and filled the car up. We took another little detour through Williams to see the fun little gateway to the Grand Canyon and made our way to our favorite hotel in Flagstaff. We got ourselves checked in and headed into town to find a place for dinner as it was dark now.

Dinner was less than memorable, but that was okay. We just wanted to get in bed, get some good sleep and head to our favorite breakfast spot in the morning, Brandy's. Getting out of Flagstaff was always a chore for us because Brandy's was off the beaten path and we back tracked to the Starbucks down the road from our hotel before filling the car with fuel and getting back on the road. Tomorrow was another day and we were having a good time together already.

Next...Heading Back to Colorado Part 3."

Reflection:
Sometimes a song can put things into perspective when dealing with the issues of life. Live Like You Were Dyin' is one of those songs for me. You can view all the lyrics online, but here are the few that really speak to me:

”I went skydiving
I went rocky mountain climbing
I went two point seven seconds
on a bull named Fu Man Chu
And I loved deeper
And I spoke sweeter
And I gave forgiveness I'd been denyin'”
And he said,
“Someday I hope you get the chance
To live like you were dyin'

Like tomorrow was a gift
And ya got eternity
to think about what to do with it
What did you do with it?
What did I do with it?
What would I do with it?

This doesn't mean I think that you should go out and do things you would never do (as in sin), but it means to think about what is most important in life and don't take it for granted. Make the most of each day you have. Tell the people in your life you love them. Take that vacation you have always wanted to take but were waiting for the "right time" to take it. And, get closer to the God who made you, gave you life and knows you better than you know yourself.