Ever since I can remember, Ive always wanted to travel, living place to place as I explored the surrounding areas. My father spent ten years living that way. Fishing, surfing, scuba diving, hunting, painting, and even sculpting had filled up his free time. When I decided to start my journey two years ago, I planned on following his path south to Florida. I had grown up with stories of Cades Cove, The Y, and many other magical places in the Great Smoky Mountains National Park. I figured it was time to make my own memories there. I moved down to Tennessee, camping out the first few nights until I had a place lined up. I immediately landed a great job and a cheap apartment. Within nine days, I was on the front page of the local newspaper working on my painting of The Old Mill. I worked hard, and made it up into the mountains every chance I had. The Smokies are a land of waterfalls, scenic vistas, verdant slopes, and mesmerising beauty. By the time Winter had come, I was ready to continue on to Cocoa Beach Florida, where my father had moved when he left Tennessee. Seeing the pier that my fathers ashes had been spread from, for the first time since before his death 18 years earlier, ended up bringing me the peace I had always sought. Teaching myself to surf there was a blast! While working on my painting of the pier one day, I even had someone my father had been best friends with start up a conversation with me randomly. It was truly an emotional moment for both of us. I learned things about my father which I never would have known otherwise. While searching for some elevation change or hiking trails, I stumbled upon the Springs of Ocala National Forest. Their beauty was one of a kind. I made it to the Springs almost weekly, but being a mountain man at heart, their call was beckoning. Three months passed quickly, and on a whim, I drove back up to Tennessee, so as not to miss Springs coming. I slept in the mountains for a full month, while saving my money. I worked as many as three jobs at a time, while focusing on my photography with an intensity. I stayed in Tennessee for a whole nine months that time, and drove back down to Cocoa Beach to once again escape the Winter. I went directly from some of the highest mountains on the East Coast, to Ocala National Forest, where I was greeted by some friendly hippies I ran into in the middle of the woods. I spent my first morning back in Florida trying to see how deep I could dive at Alexander Springs. The pressure was quite uncomfortable, and I told myself Id return for two days each and every week in order to keep working on it. And thats what I did. Within three months, I was freediving to sixty five feet. A month later, I came to the Keys on a mini vacation, and loved it. I went back to Cocoa Beach, quit my job, and drove to back down here, to live in a tent right on the ocean, for seven dollars a night in Long Key State Park. Within two weeks, a coworker of mine gave me the key to her friends million dollar house on the water, with a nice pool, and a beautiful back yard. Ive lived for free since then, keeping up on the yard as payment. I couldnt feel more blessed than I do right now. Each time I moved, I left a great situation Id built, with no gaurentees of finding anything that compared. And each time I landed on my feet, thriving quickly, with each move leading me to better and better situations. I started my journey wanting to get to know my father by walking in his footsteps, and here I am, having never felt closer to him. I hope that I have the chance to inspire others, the way he inspired me, and that his great attitude towards life, and active lifestyle can live on for time without end. Life is good, and I cant wait to see what is around the next corner of my journey. May I continue on this way for many more years!
Posted on: Mon, 28 Jul 2014 00:21:12 +0000
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