July 26th - On the way home/time to reflect

Flying over PEI on the way home.

It's hard to see PEI below the plane, let alone pick out where from my journey I'm flying over, with the Island fadin through the misty clouds, only indistinct suggestions of land being visible.

Expectations and Reality
I had expected the trail to be much busier, and accommodations likewise so. I'd hoped to enjoy the camaraderie of others doing similar tours on the trail, much as I had on Haida Gwaii. I did meet a number of people along the way, but didn't form any of those connections that endure, instead making momentary, surface connections that, given time and shared journeys, could have developed into those connections, but none of these ever played out.

Lost without a map.

I look out the window and see a new shore and land that we're passing over, still hazy through the cloud, but I'm lost without a map. It could be anywhere, really - New Brunswick, the Gaspe, even mainland Quebec (although I doubt the latter, as it feels we're going more Westward than Northward).

This journey brought me time away, and into Canada's Colonial and Post-Colonial past, and also helped me see how those get swallowed up in the name of progress. I saw the effects of slow transformation on a thriving, small agriculture and seafood island, into one ruled by conglomeration. Perhaps those restaurants using processed potato products really were the way of our current course, but I find it's a course I disagree with.

Of course, in these reflections, I need to look at myself and how I'm participating in this world and approach, because I know I am. I buy mass-produced goods, foods even - for those times I don't feel ready to cook. Because that's the catch, really - I'm buying convenience and predictability. We've eliminated distance and the exotic (imagine if goods made in China were rare and exotic again!), and insulated ourselves from shortage. I can travel the world over and be confident that people will speak English, and accept and appreciate any attempt I make not to expect this by badly trying to use their language, while truly expecting them to help me out.

In 1864, the delegates to the Charlottetown Conference would have spent a significant investment to get there. They spent time away from families and friends, viewing that costs as worthwhile to the journey they were on. Those meetings mattered. How much are we willing to invest in an idea today?

I'm already looking forward to ArtsWells this coming weekend, as a place where ideas, vision, distance, and community still matter. I think I want to theme some of my documentation this year around connections, community, and dreams. I think one part of this project will be profiles of the volunteers, staff, and others who are all a part of the ArtsWells community.

That connection

Flying into Montreal

It was great to see Tara again - she's one of those people met during travels that has become a lifelong friend. Even though it's been around 7 years since we met, it was like no time has passed at all. She's like a part of the family that way.

Hanging out in the Montreal Airport.

Further musings
I prefer the window seat on airplanes. I think I view it as the superior seat, as it lets me look out and see the world around, passing below, and trying to figure out where we are. It also givers those great moments of seeing as we break out through the clouds into the open sky, emerging into the bright of the sun, the rich blue of the sky, and the puffy fields of white.

I still dream of flying, of soaring, and should take steps to work towards this. I want to hang glide through the sky, and reading Joe Simpson write about flying by paragliding stoked the flames of a new dream of flight. There is also always the possibility of skydiving, or stepping out of an airplane in flight and using a parachute to slowly drift to the ground: To step out into the fear.

To fly means to risk falling, and the landings from this falling would likely lead to death.

To not fly means to give up on dreams.