I have fond memories as a child sitting in the front seat helping navigate. I learned a lot about reading maps, proper road etiquette, and history. There was some peace to coasting along the road, having to solve the puzzle of how one gets from point A to point B, long before the chirping of automated GPS (which I still refuse to use).
Despite my love of the road, I longed desperately to fly. As I began my military journey, I instantly loved the view from the air. I loved the view from above and seeing the forest for the trees. I loved the feeling that comes with defying gravity and how a single life becomes so minuscule as you see the world from above. You see the growing cities’ glistening lights, the flowing rivers’ beauty, puffy clouds, and rising mountains. Gliding through the air gives me a sense of peace and calm. Viewing the world from above I cannot help but marvel at its beauty. I cannot help but understand how minuscule I am to the greater existence of humanity and the sense of peace it brings me.
As I drove, I remembered how much I also loved seeing the trees in the forest. I coasted through the cities all but forgotten. All that remains are the crumbling buildings and small businesses clinging on for dear life. The ever-growing cities were congested with traffic and towering buildings. As I coasted the roads I passed from culture to culture. I saw relics of war among ourselves portrayed from one perspective or another, while very few accept the nuanced realities of the time. One side celebrates the Union victory while others cling to the notions of the Confederacy. As I pass from culture to culture the etiquette of the roads also shifts. What each culture finds important can be found on the signs and relics celebrated. As I coasted the roads, I felt the deep connection between humanity. I embraced the complex diversity and pondered our nation’s history in a single drive. There is so much history along the roads, history lost from the skies.
I love floating in the air, looking at the forest for the trees. But I also love coasting the road and seeing the trees in the forest. One helps complete the other. Each tree is unique and significant, but it cannot be understood alone. They stand among one another to create something much bigger.
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Jake Smith is a law enforcement officer and former Army Ranger with four deployments to Afghanistan.
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