The Little Things
By Jason Marshall
Thanks to technology, the sense of mystery is vanishing from today’s world.
Magic tricks that left us in awe as children can be revealed with a phone, internet connection and a voice command. To me, that is magic in itself. Sadly, the illusionist is Artificial Intelligence and what’s being made to vanish is humanity.
Yet here I sit armed with a question that could baffle and even destroy AI. Especially if AI had children.
Hey Google: How did my parents survive a summer vacation of driving four kids across Canada (and back) in a truck camper?
Not only did they survive but so did all four of us. That alone would qualify mom and dad for sainthood, as the Cross-Canada Trip of ’72 could be viewed as a miracle by the church. I was only a baby, but with certainty can say they used the Lord’s name in the cab of that old GMC pickup as they unfolded and folded all those maps.
Four kids, ranging in age from one to 15, crammed into a camper en route to British Columbia in the dead of summer. A baby. And teenagers. All in cramped quarters. No air conditioning. No Netflix. Just Archie comics and a week-long game of I Spy. Which really wouldn’t work as you cross the Prairies.
Perhaps the AI-stumping question would be: Why would my parents do that? The answer defies explanation.
As much as National Lampoon’s Vacation made us all laugh, the reason Clark Griswold hauled his family across the country was simple. To create a perfect family vacation that would live forever in their memories. His reasoning was rooted in love and a genuine fatherly approach to family.
I can only imagine my dad wanted the same for us. Yet I’m sure by the time we reached B.C. that he fought the urge to quietly slip into the forest, and head north for a life of solitude in the Yukon.
I dream of the perfect Marshall getaway, but this very morning I drove my two boys to daycare—three minutes from home—and a vein popped out of my temple that I’ve never seen before. I’ll proceed with caution until they’re older.
We want to travel with our boys and explore. To find out firsthand about other places and people. And, in turn, find out more about themselves.
My childhood photos captured trips and journeys, but if you point out places I’ve visited on a globe, it’s a very small sample size.
There is more white space than stamps in my passport, but adventures take many forms. Whether you fly to Australia or bike an hour to go fishing, the most important part of any journey is the people you share it with. The beauty of the sites you visit and the sights you see is wasted if you aren’t embracing them with the most special people in your life.
At its most simple level, travel is about somewhere different and something new.
You leave behind your bills and commitments. You’re away from your job and your mundane responsibilities. No laundry to fold or grass to cut. You hit the pause button on the routine tasks that wear you down and tire you out.
In their stead you will be showered with small moments that will make you smile and laugh. Your heart will be full and your soul nourished. That vein on your temple may even retreat.
By travelling with the boys, we want them to experience and understand what’s important, so as adults they can see the world through whatever lens they choose. They may have an itch to visit Africa or be more fulfilled to pitch a tent in Algonquin Park and watch the sunrise with a cup of coffee in their hand that was made over a campfire. They can scratch that itch however they want, and my job is to ensure they know the world is theirs to explore.
All I ask is they cherish the memories they create with their small circle of people. We want them to put their phones down unless they’re using their camera. They will learn to leave their world behind and embrace the new world they’re exploring.
We’ll teach them when travelling to be open. That means opening their eyes to what’s around them. Opening their hearts to those they’re with. Opening their minds to adventure. Opening themselves to live in the moment.
Most of all, we’ll show them how to embrace the journey as much as the destination. That’s where you’ll find the little things you’ll cherish forever. After all, the little things make all the difference.
Jason Marshall has been a writer and journalist for more than 35 years and is an on-air host and general manager at Valley Heritage Radio just outside of Renfrew, Ontario. And he’s truly a big kid at heart. You can email him anytime at jason@valleyheritageradio.ca.
