Okay, 50 States. So Now What?

I just got home from Alaska and I’m sitting in my living room. The house is pretty quiet and there’s a pile of mail sitting on the table in front of me that rivals the size of my head. I’m on the couch, perched at my computer, posed and ready to type… but there isn’t much happening.

Or maybe the problem is that there is too much happening. This is what’s going through my head…

The past year has been pretty incredible.

We’ve snuck into MGMT concerts and survived a breakdown in Laramie, WY. We’ve battled bears and ex-convicts in Yellowstone and flown planes and partied with Jim Carey. We’ve run the Tunnel to Towers Race in New York City.

We’ve been to Broadway shows and played nearly 100 coffee shop shows and written at least as many blog posts. We’ve busked (played on the streets) for gas money.

We’ve wandered the halls of Harvard and Yale and eaten lobster and Kayaked the Atlantic.We’ve gift-shopped the coast of Maine and been to football games and watched the dolphins on the coast of Florida.

We’ve stayed in resorts and frat houses, watched sunsets in Newport, Rhode Island and participated in miniature golf championships. We’ve seen the Grand Canyon and Niagara Falls and The Badlands and even camped (squatted, actually) in The Black Hills National Forest.

We’ve learned to live with less. We’ve taken necessary chances.

And in the process we’ve met a ton of interesting folks, some of whom we maybe shouldn’t have followed to dinner, but most of whom are still dear friends (oh, plus these guys. And these ones too).

We’ve put over 50,000 miles on two cars, since after the first one broke down, we bought a new one. We’ve written 730 postcards. We’ve visited our pasts and seen glimpses of our future.

The whole thing has been a really amazing, exhilarating, unexpected adventure.

But even amazing, exhilarating experiences are only as valuable as what you do with them, I would argue.

So, okay. What are we going to do with ours???

I think I mentioned earlier that it would be really easy for us to come home after a trip like this and find ourselves doing life exactly the way that we had done it before. But I was wrong. I’ve been changed forever by this journey. Doing life the way I did it before isn’t an option.

But, still. What good does it do if we are the only people who are ever changed by this experience? I mean, I’ll never be the same, but so what? What does that matter if I never pass it on to anyone else…?

And lets be honest. There are days (like today) when Sharaya and I are coordinating rides from the airport without cars because hers is in Nashville, where she lives now, and mine is somewhere in Wyoming; days when all we’re doing is opening mail and paying bills and catching up on weeks of missed e-mails and laundry… that feel a little disconcerting.

Those days don’t feel that earth-shattering.

But even on days like that we’ll keep chasing our dreams. We’ll keep writing books and blog posts and songs, keep reaching out to the generation behind us (and hey – maybe even the one ahead of us, too…)

And we’ll try to remember that sometimes “chasing our dreams” isn’t as glamorous as it seems. Sometimes it means fleeing mediocrity, but sometimes it means looking it square in the face. Sometimes it looks like 50-state road trips but sometimes it looks like being faithful in the day-to-day…

So what’s next…? We’re not totally sure. I mean, Sharaya is living in Nashville and touring in Europe this summer. I’m working on two books and learning how to tread water as a full-time blogger…

But other than that, we really don’t know. There’s nothing but open road in front of us…

So I guess not much has changed.

Video Update from Hawaii

The Grand Wailea in Maui, HI: This is the Weirdest Thing…

This is the weirdest thing.

Here I am, sitting on a balcony of the Grand Wailea in Maui, HI – a resort that represents more luxury than I have ever experienced in my entire life, and perhaps more luxury than I will ever experience again – and I’m just thinking. I’m thinking about how weird it is that I’m here. I’m actually here. And Sharaya is with me.

This is the weirdest thing.

But it isn’t just that we’re here, as remarkable as that is. It’s not just that we’re in Hawaii, the 49^th state of our 50 State road trip, wrapping up an adventure that has been nearly two years in the making – planning and dreaming and executing a task that was sometimes too exhausting or exhilarating to even put into words. It isn’t just that we’re staying at this incredible place. That’s not all.

All of a sudden it just hit me as I was sitting here, clicking away on my computer, listening to Sharaya sound check in the Molokini Gardens below. The most remarkable thing about all of this is… we’re actually doing what we set out to do.

That is the weirdest thing…

If you’re new here, and you don’t know the story of Packing Light, the short version is this: My name is Ally Spotts and one year ago my friend Sharaya Mikael and I decided to do something crazy. We quit our jobs, sold everything we owned, moved out of our apartments and packed my Subaru to set out across the country “chasing our dreams…”

Our challenge was (figuratively) to let go of the baggage that sometimes holds us back from doing what we really want to do, and (literally) to pack my old Subaru Outback with all of our belongings and travel to each of the 50 States playing shows (Sharaya) and writing a book (me). One year later, here we are…

This is the weirdest thing.

We’re traveling with a company called Everlasting Tours on a trip designed for married couples called The Lovesong Couples Getaway. Sharaya is leading worship and playing music for the trip – along with artists Aaron Shust and Phil Wickham – and I am interviewing speakers, artists and couples, managing the social media and writing the “story” of the trip.

This is the weirdest thing.

Or, maybe it’s not. You know? Maybe it isn’t weird at all. Maybe what’s weird is that we don’t expect stuff like this. Maybe what’s weird is that I don’t expect God to be the kind of God who, when I act in obedience, when I keep going despite (big) bumps in the road, when I make sacrifices to follow Him… responds with “more than I could ever ask or imagine..” (Ephesians 3:20).

Maybe what’s strange isn’t that I’m here, but that I never thought I would be…

So here I am. A little sunburned, a lot tired, a little nervous about the writing tasks on my plate over the next few weeks, but mostly just completely overwhelmed with what is happening here. I am writing. Sharaya is singing. We are living our “dreams” and, even as we speak, our story is still being written.

Even as we prepare to hop a plan from Maui to Kona, from Kona to Seattle (Sharaya), from Kona to Portland (me) and then from Seattle to Anchorage (both of us). We are living our dreams. We are couldn’t possibly be more content or excited. State #50 is coming.

This is the weirdest thing.

People often ask me, “So are you writing the book!?” and my answer is always an emphatic yes.

But the truth is that I’m not really writing a book. The truth is that the book is writing itself. This is a story about adventure. About romance. About grief, and hope, and fear. This is a book about persistence and perseverance, about pushing through the hard times to get to the good stuff…

(Sharaya’s new single titled 3 Feet from Gold is all about this! You should buy it!)

This is a story about God’s faithfulness… and even though I get to be the lucky one who puts the pen to paper, I’m not really the one writing it.

Which is just the weirdest thing…

NEW SITE!

I decided to leave the Packing Light Blog as it was in order to preserve the memory I will be blogging from my own new website.

You can keep up with me (Sharaya) in Nashville on my new site!

http://www.SharayaMikael.com

Check it out !

Hi from Ally!

Hi friends! Ally here. Just wanted to pop in and say hi because, well, my life feels strange without you! I don’t know if you’re allowed to miss people that you can’t actually see (and some of whom you’ve never even met) but it’s true. I miss you all.

Also, I have some updates. Here they are.

1. I’m posting on my new site now! http://www.allyspotts.com. Come visit me, read, and feel free to add a comment or two or five. I love watching each of your names appear in the comments section. It lets me know you’re reading and makes me feel connected to you.
2. I’m keeping all of the old Packing Light posts under the category “Packing Light” (creative of me, I know) so you can read and reminisce and think longing thoughts about the adventure we took. Oh wait… that’s just me? Hmm, well if you have a craving for Packing Light I hope this will help to satisfy you until the book comes out.
3. Speaking of the book, I’m hard at work on the proposal. I’m aiming to have it completed by the end of the month. Lots of exciting stuff happening in this area, and although I wish I could tell you all about it…. but just know that cool things are happening. Stay tuned here and at http://www.allyspotts.com.
4. I’m also busy writing new parts of the book. There is so much content you missed, if only because I never had time to write about it. Keep your eye on the Packing Light category at http://www.allyspotts.com. I may post some samples there in the coming weeks.

That’s all I have for now. I’ll drop in every now and then and say hello. And I really hope that you are doing well. I’d love to see you at my new site, and I’d love to hear from you too. Leave a comment; or drop me an e-mail if you’d rather keep it private (ally.spotts@gmail.com).

Love and hugs,

Ally

Cycles and Springs (not bycicles)

This week I am “house-sitting” (but really more like free-loading) for my good friend Michael, he is Austrian. I like to tell people that because I think Europe is neat. Point being, he is in Austria this month and has so graciously lent me his amazing downtown ultra-hip apartment in the Park Blocks.

View from Michaels... I kid you not.

This is not the first time I have set up camp at his place. Michael being the sweetheart that he is also allowed me to “house-sit” for a couple weeks the month before Ally and I left on our trip. I was homeless at the time because I had rented out my apartment trying to save money like a true starving artist! And he was gone on business. All that to say, since I lost my apartment while we were away, Michaels place is the closest thing I have to a home in Portland, and it feels good to be back.

Upon returning to the apartment, walking into the lobby and seeing the familiar front desk man, the same barista at the Starbucks on the corner, and the same cars parked next to the space reserved in the garage, I felt as though no time had passed at all. The whole 6-month saga felt more like a dream than reality. This was the last place I stayed before we left and being back here, I felt like all I had done was gone in one big circle. Here I am back where I started.

Having some space and time to myself has been nice for reflecting… Ive been thinking about New Years. Yesterday was my 7^th New Years Eve in Portland. Ive heard in several bible teachings that 7 is the Jewish number for completion/perfection. Upon realizing that I have spent 7 wonderful years in Portland, I couldn’t help but think maybe my time here has been just that. Perfect. And this week has been the perfect ending to a wonderful circle of my life.

I say circle because looking back on my 7 years of life in Portland I am amazed at how much Ive grown, but at the same time a little disheartened at the realization that Im back in the same position I was when I first moved here. Has anyone else felt this way?

I moved to Portland in 2004. Car loaded to the brim, no idea what I was going to do, how I was going to pay my bills, who I would meet, or what I would become. Sound familiar? I guess life happens in cycles. But– Ive– been–thinking.. maybe its more like a coil, or a spring. Because the truth is that each time you complete a circle, your are never in the EXACT same spot. One would hope that you are bit ahead of where you were the first time around… And maybe the more circles you make the more equipped you are to launch something…

HAPPY NEW YEAR!

Beginning Again…

I know Ive been a bit quiet over the last…. well…entire life of this blog… while Ally and I were on our little 50-state adventure I never saw the need to post. I figured why mess with a good thing? Ally did such an amazing job of so eloquently capturing our experience in words, and I am in awe of her talent as a writer. That Allison Spots folks, she is something. Can we give her a round of applause? (Insert Slow Clap)……. 

Unfortunately all good things must come to an end and as fate forces our lives in separate directions, it means splitting our lives into separate web addresses as well. ☹ In the new year you can keep up with Ally at www.Allyspotts.com, and I will keep you posted as news of her book develops!

So now I am left here to fend for myself in this big scary world of web-logging. Not gonna lie… Im pretty intimidated, I have some big shoes to fill. But I will do my best to keep you all up to date as I step directly out of what has been an amazing 6-month journey and dive into a cross-country move to Nashville.

When Ally and I ended this road-trip we made a commitment to ourselves, that we wouldn’t just settle back into the same life that we had left behind. We promised ourselves that this journey would not end here. We may have gone in one big circle on the map and ended back where we began in location, but we are not at all in the same place.

As we have said before, Packing Light is not just a once in a lifetime event, it’s a decision to leave behind the things that weigh us down and keep us from living this life to its fullest potential. I believe we were all created for a plan and a purpose and if we will just open our hands and hold this life with a loose grip, God is faithful to lead us on His path. For me it looks like the next step on that path is Nashville TN of all places… and once again, this is just the beginning.