Crossing Canada With The Maplemusketeer Volume One - An Overview (June 2014) | Seite 432

FROM THEN TO NOW

Seven months to Cross-Canada. It’s taken me over double that, seventeen months, to finish putting together this volume.
Suffice to say I’m not a sprinter, and that these tasks are not quick jaunts, or things I do lightly or easily. The fact is, it is
easier for me to jump into a trip across Canada and have to face the challenges of finding food/shelter/transport each day,
than the task of sitting down each day to arrange photos on a page, put down my words, and set free and test these ideas.
This requires a greater vulnerability.
This is the struggle between hope and fears. The hope calls me forward and pushes me on. It beckons me to realize my
dreams, and to be actively engaged in living life. The fears slow me down in an attempt to protect me from being hurt
more; a legacy of my past, and my past perspectives that still hold some sway.
Those seven months across Canada taught me a number of things as I moved beyond head knowledge into heart knowledge. It reinforced a greater awareness of the difference between needs and wants. It reminded me what it’s like to go hungry, to feel the frustration of being down to less than $20 and not knowing where I’d find more, yet to go on. It increased
my perspective of thankfulness for all that I have, amongst my network of friends and family, the joy of a full stomach, the
delight of sleeping in a real bed (which is something that is still a gift to me), and my passion for encouraging passion and
artistry in individuals.
It took concepts and dreams of mine and tested them, honing them in the process.
It reconfirmed in me my greater vision and plans.
And it wasn’t easy. And it wasn’t comfortable.
I’m still aware of the ways I could do things faster, be better, improve, but I’m also reminded to try to show some of the
grace and understanding that I allow others, towards myself. We are where we are, and we live and we learn. My friends
remind