In the 1991 movie Thelma and Louise two women have grown bored of the mundane day to day life. They decide to take off and find adventure, a little excitement. They found more than they expected. Their adventure included a rape that led to a murder, the robbery of a convenience store and a lost inheritance. Ultimately, these ladies arrive at the edge of the Grand Canyon with police on their heels. The ladies agree to keep going. Placing a foot on the accelerator plunging over the cliff.
No one can deny that was one hell of an adventure. Our Thelma and Louise have opted for tamer adventures. So far, their adventures have not included the police. They did have an interesting encounter at the Grand Canyon. A guide shared with Thelma and Louise a group before saw a person fall. A group was attempting to get a selfie, when one asked the group to move down a little. That slight movement was enough for the end person to fall off the canyon.
Marian and Regina maintain secrecy surrounding who is Thelma and who is Louise. They often wear t-shirts with Thelma and Louise on them. Marian shared; they get a lot of questions about the t-shirts. "We always say Thelma has on the purple shirt and Louise has on the white pants." No one can deny the bond between these ladies. They reference each other in writing as someone who shall remain nameless. This bond has grown for over 68 years. When asked what the best thing is about traveling, Marian says, "Being with my friend, she is more like a sister. We talk about everything."
Marian feels she and her travel buddy complement each other. Both embrace different aspects of the adventure. Once Regina wanted to go parasailing. Marian was not down with being over the ocean with balloon material. She was an absolute no on this adventure. Regina on the other hand was excited and really want to float above the ocean. Regina talked and talked until Marian reluctantly agreed to try parasailing. Once on the boat the guide asked who wanted to go first. Marian shouted, "We going first!" " I just wanted to get it over with." Once in the air she relaxed just a little. The ride was beautiful. An adventure worth pushing the boundaries of comfort.
Marian is a semi, intermittently retired nurse who spent her career educating and supporting pregnant and parenting women. Her easy warm smile endeared her to her patients. Her smile may have been warm, but Marian was a no BS kind of nurse. Big on accountability. In her retirement years she has continued to support her community. She recently completed at stint working at the local homeless shelter. She arrived believing she would be assisting parenting women. For whatever reason the shelter was "low" on parenting women, without a second thought she informed the shelter she would see whoever wanted to be seen. While you can never call an adventure like this a mistake, she was seeing way more patients than intended. This part-time side hustle turned into a full-time gig, briefly.
Regina continues to share her love of nursing while training the next generation of nurses at Loyola University of Chicago. She has spent many years listening to her students' recounts of their family travel adventures. During those early years her focus was on her husband and family, travel was parked in the recesses of her mind. Eventually, she grew tired of her students leaving her for their travels and decided to go on her own adventures, creating her own stories to share.
The childhood friends became travel buddies in 2014. The first adventure was a road trip to Mount Rushmore from Chicago. On this trip they met bikers on their way to Sturgis Bike Week. The bikers were easy to engage in talk. They failed to meet the stereotypes perpetuated about bikers. Arriving at Mount Rushmore was a thrill. The massive sculpture representing Presidents George Washington, Thomas Jefferson, Theodore Roosevelt and Abraham Lincoln is breath taking. Located in the Black Hills of South Dakota. Although Mount Rushmore and Sturgis were fantastic experiences the ladies decided no more road trips. They feel they left way too much DNA and tissue along the roadways.
Although the decision was made not to do more road trips, Thelma and Louise committed to visiting a national park each year. So far, they have visited 10 national parks. Marian states something crazy happens every year. While in Yellowstone National Park in Wyoming in 2015. The pair recounted the story of a female bear that attacked, killed and hid the body of a hiker. Bears normally attack to protect themselves or their cubs. This attack was unique because it appeared to be unprovoked, and the bear hid the body. Unfortunately, the female bear had to be euthanized.
While visiting Olympic National Park in Washington they were near Tahlequah, the orca whale, who was mourning her dead calf. "The mother was still holding her calf and the other orcas were surrounding her." Marian felt it was like the other orcas were protecting and supporting a friend. "We weren't allowed to be near them. They were protecting their privacy. Even killer whales support family."
Traveling as a woman can be fraught with fears and anxieties not always experienced by men. Traveling as a Black woman adds an extra layer to both. While anxieties may exist, Marian and Regina have experienced mostly welcoming and friendly people. Most are simply curious. Marian shares, "We get the normal stares mostly." Reginna and Marian wear their hair in natural hairstyles which can bring curious stares and every once in a while, someone requests to touch their hair. Marian says, Regina is much nicer about than I am. She will say yes and let them touch her hair. Lord, don't let me get arrested as I say hell not and flipped them off behind my back." For many centuries the focus on African American women and their hair has been controversial. Letting go of those feelings can be difficult.
The travelers were only able to recount one instance of feeling profiled. The two had traveled from Maine to Canada without difficulty. The return trip over the Theodore Park Bridge was a different story. The Bridge officer yelled at them to "stop now!" His gruff manner was scary and off putting. "Where do you live? What are you doing here?" Regina was so nervous, indeed scared, she nearly vomited. Marian reached to turn down the radio and the officer screeched and seemed to reached for his weapon. This return to the United States, their home country felt unnecessarily aggressive. They felt unwelcomed in their own country.
Although the return from Canada was an uncomfortable experience it does not damper Thelma and Louise's desire to travel. They are planning to travel to Alaska in July via cruise. They will travel to Roosevelt Campobello International Park in New Brunswick, Canada before heading to Denali. They are hoping to find icebergs, bears and exciting adventures. Marian believes the key to life is always to vacation where you have never been before. "There is more to the world than our culture, our backyard, take time to experience other cultures."
Women are amazing! Although we work hard to provide for our families, we find the time to grow ourselves and explore our world. Thank you, Thelma and Louise, for a glimpse into your adventures!
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