Afterward

Hi there, friend. It’s been a while since we’ve last been in touch. I trust that your New Year is going just fine? Great, glad to hear it. Better than Epstein’s that’s for sure. Since looking back on my work, it dawned on me that I never really answer the question that I set out to find. I was set on finding The American Dream at the Crossroads of The Mother Road.  I think the answer is mostly spelled out in the book, but not as thoroughly as I’d liked it to be. You see glimpses of it in each city and the small town you come across. It’s in the motels, restaurants, pubs, novelty gift shops, and general stores still surviving and since abandoned alike. It’s in the people like The Mayor of Detroit, Sandy and Dick in Kalamazoo, Cody, Mike, Dave, and Jazz in Chicago, Stephanie in Willowbrook, IL, John and Keith of Odell, IL, Iwa of St. Louis, Lori, Alex, and Jaycee of Kingdom City, MO, Amy, Joey, and Patti in Tulsa, Sassy and Uncle in Amarillo, Flora, Santa Fe’s Most Wanted, Mike, and Lionel in Santa Fe, Bill, Ariel, Tony, Gerard, and Maria, and Ingrid and Maria-Carmen in Albuquerque, Vanessa in Sedona, Erion and Mike in Cottownood, AZ, Stephanie and Laura in Flagstaff, Shirley and Hayley in Oatman, AZ, The Gang in Bullhead City, AZ, Myron and Matt of Needles, CA, Mike,  and Jose, and Desiree in Los Angeles, And as often as I was motivated by the very possibility of The American Dream during each leg of the journey, it wasn’t until I made it to LAX that I saw something I didn’t expect to see – The American Dream in person, in the eyes of thousdands of Americans and foreigners alike.

I saw people of all walks of life bustling, coming and going, through a very busy major international airport, most looking quite happy given that people generally do not like airports. It’s kind of like visiting the dentists’ office, except with overpriced bars and food courts, and the fact that your Doctor (hopefully) isn’t as intoxicated as you are. From stockbrokers to models flying to/from a destination photoshoot, you will find anyone and everyone here. And if it wasn’t for The American Dream, none of this would be possible.

Instead, there’d be no international airport, perhaps not even a Los Angeles to fly into. After all, what encouraged the very journey West movement was the American Dream. So yes, The American Dream is alive and well, friend. Although, I might suggest we call it something else. What that is, well, I ain’t just certain yet. Until Vegas, where I hear a re-birth is in order. Ah hell – I’m sure you’ll be hearin’ from me before then, friend. If that’s okay with you that is?