Friday, January 5, 2018

Trucker For a Week


I had a singularly splendid experience in early December that I did not even see coming.  One of my sons did a nine month stint as a long haul trucker this past year.  On a whim, I asked if he could take me on one of his runs.  It turns out he could.  So, I was able to spend eight days on the road with my son finding out all about the trucking way of life.  It was a fantastic experience! 
We traveled 3700 miles in eight days and covered ten states.  We ate Slim Jims for breakfast, watched many beautiful sunrises come up over the horizon, traveled during the middle of the night, slept in a bunk at the back of the truck cab, watched movies in the dash of the truck cab when we stopped for the day.  I saw my son expertly back up his truck in a very narrow space, I took showers in a truck stop which was really quite immaculate and clean!!  We drank truck stop coffee, ate at truck stop diners which were full of very friendly people and wonderful food, we dropped off loads at loading docks and picked up 40,000 pounds of avocados once.  
We prayed together, sang loudly to the radio, talked about life and thoroughly enjoyed this experience together as we traveled the miles.  
If you know any truckers, thank them!!  They keep our economy running and they do a very hard job with good will.  And it is a noble profession!
I will never forget my experience of being a Trucker for a week.



























































7 comments:

  1. That sounds like such a neat experience! I've often wondered if the trucker's timeline (need to get cargo from A to B in a certain amount of time) meant they couldn't really enjoy the drive, but it would seem so from your post! Does your son enjoy the long hours on the road? Thanks for linking up!

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    1. Hi Kelly - It was a lark for eight days, but the long hours on the road and the loneliness seem like they would be hard especially if you were a Dad with kids at home. Sometimes you have to travel at night to get your cargo there on time and that can be long. But there is a certain sense of freedom of the road that I know they all enjoy. I certainly did!

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  2. Happy New Year Denise! What an adventure! Sounds like you both had a wonderful time together. After my dad retired from his 27 year career in the Navy he moved back to Indiana, where my family is from, and became a long haul trucker, a career that lasted almost 27 years! When we lived out West he would sometimes be able to stop and visit with us, which was always nice. Will your son continue down the trucking path as a long term career or will he pursue something else? All the best to you and your family in the new year +++

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    1. Hi Kim!! Happy New Year to you as well! Your dad sounds wonderful! My son committed to it for nine months because he wanted to know if he could take that challenge. But now he is working in politics! = ) He will always remember his trucking time as a time of self reliance and growth!

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  3. What a great opportunity! To see some world AND spend time with your son. Great photo documentary too.

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  4. Wow that was some experience. How wonderful that you were able to do that with your son.

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