It’s time.
It’s time to finish what I’ve started.
Time to put my money where my mouth is
And time to put one foot in front of the other and make my way to Canada.
Two weeks ago I was under the impression my backpacking was over for the year, that the extent of my future hike were limited to day hikes in city parks. I set my gear aside, gave away my leftover food, and dedicated my time to my art to fill the hole that had been punched into my chest. When I felt like I was suffocating I buried myself in video games. When I felt restless, I distracted myself with movies. When I felt useless, I cleaned house. My rough plan for the near future was to be productive enough so I wouldn’t feel like I was wasting my time.
But here I am, 14 days later, on a shuttle to Mt. Hood with Evan, after scrambling to arrange resupply stops in Washington in just 24 hours. It’s time to continue this adventure. I will touch that monument on the border whether my body likes it or not. I can do this. I WILL do this.
And when I’m done, I’m going to Rose City Comic Con to get hella inspired by other cartoonists and creators, and start working on the Big Project. This has been one hell of a ride and I look forward to putting it down on paper.
My desire to create a comic about this experience is not so much so I can tell others it, but so that later down the line I can prove to myself that this did indeed happen. Looking back it feels like I crafted it all in a daydream and tricked my brain into thinking they’re memories. I want to hold onto these memories tightly and remember them fondly, because they deserve it.
This is a life changing experience, so I must ensure that it’s documented in a personal manner, and there’s no better way to do that than with a comic.
Here I go, returning to the Pacific Crest Trail, because starships were meant to fly, hands up and touch the sky; can’t stop cause we’re so high…
Let’s do this one last time.
(Credit to Nikki Minaj; Starships)