So Many Miles…..

Over my many, many blah, blah years of living I have traveled the road between California and Utah close to one million times!  Each trip unique.  Each trip has a story. The trip from California and Utah back in the day was about a 13-15 hour adventure because we had to slowdown for each town; today the trip can be shorter because the freeway bypasses each town.  The one I’m remembering today is from my childhood.  We were making the trip at night time in my dad’s truck which had a camper shell.  I’m not really sure where we all sat.  This was in the day before seatbelts and there was no extended cab business.  So my thinking now is that the parents were in the front and maybe one child in the cab and two children in the back of the truck safely under the roof of the camper shell.  This particular trip took place before my youngest brother was born.  (I can’t even imagine this mode of travel today!)  As we travelled over the forever roads of Nevada my parents became tired and decided in Wendover to pull over and take a nap; it was in the wee dark hours of the morning.  They locked the three of us in the back in hopes that we would continue to sleep and they in turn planned to sleep in the cab.  This was NOT okay with me.  I knew the only way out of this situation was to wake up my baby brother; who I’m guessing was under the age of 2.  And it worked!  My Dad moved to the back of the truck to sleep and I moved up front with my mom to help her stay awake while we continued on our journey over the never ending Salt Flats!  And here is where the big part of the memory comes in.  My mom was very tired.  Driving and tired are not friends.  I do clearly remember my mom’s struggle to stay awake and me shouting at her to do just that.  I will never forget that trip and the lesson….don’t drive when you are tired!