A Journey For A Loved One
Danna's dream trip: A cross-country motorcycle tour
to Glacier National Park... through my eyes.
By Marquis Wheeler
A Journey For A Loved One copyright 2011 by Marquis Wheeler
Smashwords edition
With thanks to: Sally Bosco http://sallybosco.com
All rights reserved.
No part of this publication may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, without written permission from the author.
For more information about the author, visit http://MarquisWheeler.com
Acknowledgments
I would like to thank Sally Bosco for all of her assistance in editing, support and well, basically holding my hand through the entire publishing process. Without her help, my story may never have gotten out there. You can find out more about Sally Bosco and her incredible stories by visiting http://SallyBosco.com
Chapter 1
...the doctor told me there was nothing more they could do.
All I could do was hold her.
In the spring of 2009, my beloved wife was diagnosed with lymphoma cancer. She fought vigilantly, and by the beginning of August was given a diagnosis of full remission. The PET scans were clean, and we celebrated. Unfortunately, by her next check up the cancer was back, and back with a vengeance. On November 19th 2009, Danna lost her battle, and cancer took my wife, my love, my best friend from me. My whole world came crashing down around me.
My entire life is all about my wife... loving her and taking care of her. For me, she is the reason the sun would rise each morning. Believe me when I say, I can go on for hours talking about Danna and how much she means to me. I have done my best to keep on breathing each day, and most of that strength comes from working on projects that honor her. To say it has been tough does not even begin to tell of the pain I feel.
I love my wife with all my heart, and miss her so much... I love you my little angel.
Danna and I have always been avid outdoor adventurers. We have enjoyed camping, hiking, horse back riding, canoeing, white water rafting, fishing, boggy boarding, and motorcycle touring to name a few. If we're outdoors, we're happy.
Motorcycle touring, our most recent adventure escaped, became our greatest thrill and obsession over the last several years. Anytime we had the chance, you’d find us cruising the blacktop in fresh air.
We’ve taken trips though all the Southeastern United States, but most of our trips were to the North Carolina/Tennessee Smoky Mountain area... we love it there so much. One of our longer “big” trips took us up along the Blue Ridge Parkway to the Shenandoah Skyway, through Gettysburg and then into the Pennsylvania Amish countryside, and back down the Eastern coastline back to Florida. That was an incredible trip.
Our last "big" motorcycle trip was a tour all through Colorado and New Mexico, and then back home to Florida. It was a 3,500+ mile trip that Danna considered to be her favorite trip ever. Work restricted the amount of time we could take for vacations, so we always covered a lot in 2 weeks.
The next big trip my wife wanted to take was a trip out West to see Glacier National Park Montana. She had seen a documentary on television about the area and had decided that was going to be our next big tour. We started planning the trip in 2008 for our 2009 vacation. Unfortunately, her realization of this dream was not to be. My wife has always had a great love for the outdoors, and the beauty of nature. It is because of this and my profound love for her that I decided to make this trip for her. I will be her eyes, but I will let her spirit guide and comfort me. I have never gone on a trip without her... This will not be easy!
This book is a documentary of that trip... the places we would have gone together, and my commitment to keep her memory alive and shared with everyone.
I am making this trip alone, despite the urging of friends and family who wish to go with me. This is time I need to be alone with the thoughts, memories and spirit of my wife, and fulfill her dream of seeing Glacier National Park.
Chapter 2
...And so it begins.
DAY 1 – HEADING TO CHATTANOOGA TENNESSEE
Got up this morning at three am. Usually I'm pretty good at getting motivated on the days we are leave on vacation. But this time is not the same. My Danni bear, one of my numerous nicknames for my wife Danna, is not with me on this trip in the physical sense. The thought of it brings me to tears immediately.
I muster up what I can to get the ball rolling so I can get on the road. In my haste I leave my keys to the car and house on the counter and lock the door as I go into the garage. You bone head, you need the keys to move the car out of the way to get the bike out, and you just locked the door with keys "in" the house.... typical start of a vacation morning in the Wheeler household. After braking in, and retrieving the keys, I open the garage door only to find that God with his infinite sense of humor has decided on this particular day to change the very air outside to water. No, not rain.... humidity so thick it might as well be raining. In the time it takes me to move the car and pull the Harley out, I am drenched in a sticky concoction of sweat and humidity.... lovely, just lovely. Undaunted, I pull the bike out and within a few minutes, we are on our way. Again the thought of going without my beloved wife saddens me. This is the first time we have taken the Harley on a long trip, so we will put it through it's paces and see what she can handle. Within a few minutes we are on I-75 heading north. It's dark and steamy out, but cruising along at high speed, it's not so bad.