To Shake the Sleeping Self: A Journey from Oregon to Patagonia, and a Quest for a Life with No Regret

by Jedidiah Jenkins

It often dawns too late that we have only one life, only one path, and the choices we make become the story line of our lives.

“Back in the forties, fifties, sixties, everyone was hitchhiking everywhere. My dad hitched from Florida to New York and back a bunch of times. What changed was the news cycle. Back in the day, if someone was hurt or attacked in Maine, the people in Los Angeles never heard a word of it, so the sense of safety was only learned organically. National news made people in Boston fear what was happening in Phoenix. It’s the same with people locking their doors in their neighborhoods and not letting their kids play in the woods. It’s no more dangerous now, it’s just the fear has changed.”

She spoke like life owed her everything, but hadn’t yet paid her a dime.

I have always wanted hills and trees. I trust land like that. Flat land and barren desert threaten my sense of understanding. I cannot get my bearings. I have no point of reference, and can’t wait to leave. But around hills, trees, streams, and valleys, I want to linger.

vanity doesn’t like peers. It likes followers.

So very true.

stray dog came up and trotted next to me, as if drawn by my thinking. As if responding to some deep calling in every dog to comfort a lost boy.