A few of my favorite books have inspired me to become the person that I am and the person that I aspire to be: adventurous and spontaneous. Needless to say, it is our surroundings that influence us, but whenever I read a book that keeps me captivated for hours and hours well into the morning that I just cannot put down, the story, fictional or not, stays embedded into my soul forever whether or not I realize it.
On the Road by Jack Kerouac was just that. Kerouac is ultimately my inspiration to truly live, to travel, to observe, to taste and to experience the world around me.
One day after work in Downtown Los Angeles, I came across a new book store called the Last Book Store. It smelled like a wet cave. Not disgusting, but it felt like there was something hidden inside for me to find. The book store is in a historical building in DTLA and the wrought iron gate entrance made me feel welcomed. High ceilings, rows of books, couches, art and a stage.
I found my way to the section of Beatnik authors and found several books by and about Jack Kerouac. At this point I had already read The Dharma Bums and On the Road as well as poetry by Allen Ginsberg and Charles Bukowski. I was smitten with Kerouac’s portrayal of himself as Sal Paradise in On the Road. His relationships, his ideals, his visions…I desired those for myself (minus the Benzedrine), but my own adventures and stories to experience and tell.
My bookshelf serves as a shrine to my favorite author.
One of my most recognizable Kerouac parallels was when I had gone backpacking into the Trinity Alps after I first moved up to Humboldt County for school. Another camper and I were sitting by the fire we had built and we were taking in all the beauty and nature around us.
We were sharing an experience that came together when we both were reminded of description Kerouac gave of the alps in Mammoth Mountain in The Dharma Bums. The boulders, the summit and the clear lake beneath the summit. It was all there. It was a refreshing feeling knowing that someone else knew what I was talking about.
At that moment I realized I had begun to live the life that I wanted to lead and carry out. I was at the right place and at the right time in the timeline of my life. I don’t need a book to realize that, but it reinforced my need for adventure and excitement even in the form of an arduous activity.
The world is my backyard and it’s there for me to explore and experience for myself. Now I adventure and travel as often as I can whether it’s a road trip to the desert or a trip around the world.
‘Nothing behind me, everything ahead of me, as is ever so on the road.’
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