Getting Hitched

Traveling down the road unhitched is a very different experience from traveling hitched. Unhitched, you can pretty much go wherever you want without regard for anything or anyone else… for the most part. If you want to stop, turn, park, traverse… you do. It is simple and carefree. You are familiar with your “body” and you know how to navigate and maneuver with that body.

Traveling down the road “hitched” presents a completely new experience. Now you have another “body” to think about, to care about, to pay attention to. You can no longer stop on a dime, do a U-turn, pull into any place or space without considering the other body.

Now you have something else that is constantly on your mind as you travel down the road. You consider how your actions will affect this other body. You consider your actions and maneuvers based on not only the needs of this body, but also the limitations it presents. You are aware of its presence and its connection to you.

And when you forget… or take it for granted, you are most likely only reminded when it starts to move in a direction that is not the direction you are trying to go. You notice it when something starts to go wrong, when it starts to jerk you around, or when you are scared you are going to lose it.

Sometimes it is a burden, and it limits where and when you can go. Sometimes it takes you places you wouldn’t have gone otherwise and have experiences you wouldn’t have had that make it all worthwhile. There can also be a sense of comfort, security, and purpose.

It can be easy to unhitch – and maybe that is best when the weight and responsibility becomes too burdensome… when you start to resent it and can no longer recall your excitement of why you hitched up in the first place. But, it can also be a very beneficial partnership enabling you to travel down the road of life in the best possible way. If you travel with consideration, respect, and appreciation of the other body; being hitched can be a very rewarding experience. Happy trails.