This past spring break I had the opportunity to go on a cross country road trip with some of my friends out to Zion National Park in Utah and then back. We started in Auburn, Alabama where we all go to school, and from there we spent a couple of days going out to Zion. Everyone always says that before you become an official adult in the real world you need to do two things: work on a campaign, so that you always answer the survey and respect the process a little more because of how hard it is, and to work in the restaurant business, so that you respect your waiter or waitress and tip well, because that job is very difficult. Well I would say that before going out into the real world as adults everyone should do three things: 1. Work on a campaign. 2. Work in the restaurant business and 3. Go on a cross country road trip. Whether it be with your best friends or with some people you barely know, everyone should go on a cross country road trip because:
1. You learn a lot about yourself.
You will learn so much about yourself on a cross country road trip. You learn the things that really bother you, because through spending a lot of time with the same people, you see things that others do that bother you. You also learn what food you would be willing to eat to survive: when certain food chains that you hate are the only things for miles on the interstate in the middle of Oklahoma. You learn what music you really hate and really love: after the third cycle of the same country music there's a chance you'll scream. You also will learn if you get car sick or not and how many hours you can last in the car without being car sick.
2. You learn patience.
With learning all of these things about yourself, like things that bother you, you learn to find the strength within you to handle the things that bother you. You learn to hold in your pee until the driver wants to stop. You learn patience in awaiting your destination because it's honestly going to take a couple of days.
3. You see what's outside of your home state.
A lot of Americans haven't been out of their home state, however when you go cross country on a road trip, you get to see all different regions and states of the US. You see the different cultures that each state has and when you get the time to stop at a random, hole in the wall restaurant, it's more than likely going to be the best food ever. You get to see the rolling hills of farmland in Oklahoma, the rolling dust in West Texas, the blizzards in Colorado, the deserts and cacti in New Mexico and the Grand Canyon in Arizona.
4. You get to appreciate your home state.
Even though you get to get out of your home state and experience all of these amazing new things in other states, you get to appreciate your home state and more than that, your hometown. You get to appreciate the things that you love from your home, and when your in a state that's 100 degrees in the middle of March, you can appreciate that it's not that hot at home. Or the complete opposite and appreciate that you aren't having a blizzard in the middle of March.
5. You learn a lot about everyone on the trip with you.
When you spend 33+ hours in a car with however many other people, you can't just fill the silence with music the entire way. So you talk! You play games, and answer deep questions, that everyone answers honestly. You find out that you have the same life plan as someone else, or you learn someone's most embarrassing story. You form bonds and memories with these people that are irreplaceable. And they also learn a lot about you, and you get to the point where you can start answering questions for the other people on the trip.
6. You grow to love America more as a whole.
When you go and see as much of the US as you can, you begin to grow a higher appreciation and love for America than you had before. Getting to see how beautiful the mid-west is, the Rocky Mountains, stopping at as many National Parks as you can.The more of the United States that you see, the more you love the nature it provides all around you. Oceans, mountains, deserts, canyons, and so much more.
7. The memories and stories.
You have some hilarious jokes, experiences and even some potentially scary or sketchy moments that you went through together. Things that you only experienced with one specific group of people and that are forever ingrained into your mind. It's stories to tell your children as they are packing to go cross country, or a story to laugh about when you're having a hard day.
Going on a cross country road trip is something I think everyone should do before they go out into the real world where breaks come at a rarity. It's challenging but it also changes you, you learn and take away from that experience. You grow and it's just fun.
