Godspeed, Dominick

DJ on the North Rim. Age 14, Year 2010

Tonight my son sets out on at least a six month grand adventure. Both he and his girlfriend Soni got jobs at the South Rim of the Grand Canyon. He will be a server and she will work in retail. The truth is, the job is irrelevant. He wants to explore and have  big adventures. Living at the Grand Canyon for six months is a great opportunity for him.

All parents want their kids to be successful and make a lot of money. We all want our kids to go to college or learn a trade. It was hard for me to come to terms with, but that is not what he wants out of life. He  is only 21, so maybe that will change someday. Right now, he wants to go from national park to national park. I give him all the credit in the world to have the balls to just go.

I took him on a huge vacation out west when he was 14. We visited many of the west's most majestic scenery. When I got home it was a difficult transition. The trip made me appreciate the little things more. It made me think how far a bird migrates, how tough it is for a small striper to survive. The trip made me really grateful the White Mountains in New Hampshire are only three hours away.
Although the Whites can not match the vertical of the Tetons or the wildness of the Beartooth Wilderness, for me they are wild enough. When I need to get away, I can in New Hampshire.

For DJ, the trip had the opposite effect. Suddenly everything around here was too small. He still likes New Hampshire, but it isn't big enough for him. Suddenly, seeing a red tailed hawk wasn't enough after seeing elk and bighorn sheep and grizzlies.

I do not blame him for this. He was a kid and we saw so many amazing things from the Rocky Mountains to Joshua Trees in the Mojave Desert. So for the last few years he has felt a bit out of place. This isn't where he wants to be. He wants wide open spaces. He wants to be too close to large mammals. He wants to stand at the edge of a cliff and see a hundred miles without civilization.

So, he applied to many of the national parks and landed himself a job as a waiter. He got his car fixed up and did a lot of packing. His girlfriend only found out a few days ago she got the job. They took off this evening after the after work traffic subsided. It was a difficult goodbye. Although we don't always get along, it doesn't mean we don't love each other.

I am alone the next six months at least. He will be making his way across the country for the next few days. Then he will get a dorm on the South Rim of the Grandest Canyon on earth. He will have a couple days off a week to explore the canyon and parts of Arizona. It is an opportunity that most of us, myself included, would be to scared to take. I admire his willingness to leave everything he knows in a quest to find adventure.

Godspeed DJ, I love you,

Dad