The ‘Ole Buckeye and I wanted to plan a special vacation for July 2016.  We had a span of 2 weeks.  The grand girls would be away for 2 weeks at Camp Chanco.  They go every year and the timing would be perfect for us to plan a great trip.  We would have no responsibilities for 2 full weeks.  We looked into cruises, we talked about Europe, we tossed around a variety of ideas.  The only thing holding “me” back was a “Save the Date” that I had received for a wedding smack dab in the middle of the 2 weeks period.  It was for a wedding of a former employee.  I hesitated to commit to a big trip.  I was uncertain “why”, but I just couldn’t pull the plug on booking a vacation.

Then we received an invitation.   A wedding invitation.

The wedding was Saturday, July 23, 6:30 AM in a barn in the Smokey Mountains, near Gatlinburg.  The ‘Ole Buckeye….”Really”?  Me…”Yes, Really!”

The invitation pulled at my heartstrings.  This would be no ordinary wedding.  Believe me, I have been to a significant number of weddings in my life.  I am gently addicted to exploring unique weddings, over the top weddings, simple weddings…after all I have been in that industry for over 30 years in one way or another.

This wedding could not be compared to any of the above.  The reason?  I was asked to explore my “why“.  Actually every guest was asked to explore their why.

Remember the Why | David & Brandi Say “I Do”

A question which has the power to stump even the most intelligent person. However, it’s a question Brandi and I explore every day and it’s a question we’re asking each and every guest who comes to our wedding to examine and ponder. Why have you chosen the life you have?

In examining the invite, and the wedding website, I knew that I could not miss the special day that was being planned.

The ‘Ole Buckeye was not as enthusiastic, however, he knows that when my Sixth Sense kicks in, I need to follow my instincts.

So, rather than a cruise to Alaska, or a river cruise in Europe, we would be driving to Gatlinburg.  Decision made…response card sent.

In order to make the most of the time that we had, we examined the different road trips that would be possible.  We would have one week (between Wednesday sail races…I did have to give a little!)  We explored  going to Charlottesville and continuing on to drive a big portion of the  Blue Ridge Parkway…all 400 plus winding miles requiring a lot of time and some intense driving.  We decided this would be a bit much.

Since we have heard praiseworthy things about Asheville and we were greatly intrigued by the area 2 years ago when we passed through with the grand girls, we decided to spend more time in that area and use it as a jumping off point for driving the lower portion of the Blue Ridge Parkway.  The decision was made.  We left a great deal of the travel unscripted.  We elected to adjust our travel making it dependent on weather and what might strike our interest as we journeyed.

And so the trip began.  We left after the ‘Ole Buckeye’s sail race on Wednesday with a car packed for most any possibility, and a cooler for keeping us feed and refreshed.

By the way, the timing of departure was near perfection.  The ‘Ole Buckeye sailed while I underwent all of the in house procedures necessary to leave our home in near perfect condition as we left.  We may need to adopt this method for future trips.

I am anxious to post several blogs about this trip as well as the wedding.  It was indeed special.  Had the weather agreed, the entire trip would have been perfect.

I am so blessed to have the opportunity to travel and take advantage of special times.  I only hope that I continue to be lead by my heart on how I elect to spend my time and treasure.