Telluride Pt. 1
Justin and I had control of the music selection on the day we drove into Telluride.
We had listened to our fair share of Beautiful Things, Golden Hour, In the Stars, Ghost Town, and This is What Heartbreak Feels Like.
Going to Telluride was kind of like stepping back in time for both of us, so we put on some Tim McGraw and it was magical.
The kids rolling their eyes and complaining as the two of us sang at the top of our lungs all the way into town.
We had to start with Telluride…
Telluride, the snow falling down
I was waking up in that sleepy little town
In her eyes my world came so alive
I never will forget all those sleepless nights
In Telluride
Does it get any more perfect than that?
It is amazing that a place neither of us lived, could have such a special place in our hearts.
For Justin, he made Dave and Hambone bike 30 minutes out of their way on their bike trip across the US just to see a town he’d never been to. He’d heard of it and had always wanted to see it and this was his chance. On a bike. Add this to the list of things my brain can’t comprehend!
And for the record, all three agreed the detour was worth it! The town is…special.
For me, Telluride has a more complicated story.
I drove across the country from Florida with my sister when I was in high school. She was leaving the political world of DC behind and heading west to try life in the mountains. It was snowing when we pulled up to her apartment complex and everything was covered in white. I was a Florida girl, so all of this was majestic.
We toured the town, made sure she had everything she needed, and I think we were headed to Denver the next day. I still remember going to the Telluride airport and seeing all the elk on the runway just hanging out. Tom Cruise and Nicole Kidman landed with their kids and we saw the backs of them as they walked thru the teeninsy airport. It felt like we were in a movie.
My sister’s house where I stayed for the Bluegrass Festival
Unfortunately, my flight couldn’t take off and so my sister drove me to Denver.
I came back a summer or two later for the Bluegrass Festival and still can’t believe I was able to do this trip. Thank you mom and dad for making that happen!
By this time, my brother had graduated college and was briefly living in Telluride before moving on to LA to work in the film industry.
The feel of the town was like no other and I just loved the pace and familiarity of it all. The freedom to go hike or walk down the streets and meander. This wasn’t a thing you did in Tampa.
But the Bluegrass Festival almost did me in. I was in the peak of my alcoholism and the combination of drinking, being out in the sun all day, the elevation, and dehydration, did a number on me.
Honestly, I consider myself lucky to be here today.
When my friends did an intervention on me for my 20th birthday, I decided I would finish out the semester at school but not return for the 2nd semester.
When considering where to go, following my siblings to Telluride seemed a good option, but in my alcoholic thinking, I realized that wouldn’t work because everyone in the small town would know I was their younger sibling and not of age. And that would not work well for me, now would it?
So I returned to my parents and started therapy. (much better choice)
When I got sober at 23, I always thought of that decision to not move to Telluride when the opportunity presented itself. How sad that I had let alcohol be my determining factor. But alcoholism is ugly and robs people of many things.
For a non-alcoholic, this type of thinking will not make any sense, but if you’re an alcoholic, you’ll get it. We don’t always make the wisest decisions or base them on sound reasoning.
I know that God got me right where I needed to be because I moved the next semester to Chapel Hill to finish college and that’s where I got sober, surrounded by young adults just like me who I can’t imagine being able to get and stay sober without.
But Telluride will always be a part of my story and to see it in person, with an amazing husband and four beautiful children in tow, was something I never dreamed would be part of my story back as a struggling 20 year old.
I truly believe if I had moved to Telluride, these kiddos and the sober, happpy life I have now would not even be close to a reality.
And for that, as a gentleman reminded me when I picked up my one year chip, is all due to God.
So thank you God for getting me sober and keeping me sober, now almost 23 years later. I am beyond humbled by it and deeply grateful for the life you’ve given me.
