Absolute Freedom

I wholeheartedly reject the tyranny of the expected.

I have typed these words before. I have said them to friends and colleagues. They have hung in the air and existed on the web for anyone to find. They are a mission statement for my life. These words define so much of who I am, but I remain a creature of routine. The world expects certain things from me, and, more often than not, I oblige.

As I type these words, I do so as an engaged man, saving for a wedding, saving for a house, planning a honeymoon, working an 8 to 5 job. I have my hobbies. I have causes where I dedicate my free time. This life of mine looks like countless others. Perhaps I have tweaked the approach or pursued momentary diversions from the expected path, but I always find my way back. I do as I am expected, because there always seems to be some limitation to absolute freedom. Knowing this to be true, I still find myself willing to try. I see this perseverance building toward a culminating event in my future.

Before I explain what I mean, I would like to share four times in my life when I felt my next step was not set in stone. From there, I will fully explain how that freedom felt and why it ended.

Moving to Seattle

In early January 2011, I began a cross-country road trip from Oklahoma City to Seattle. Expecting terrible winter weather, I…