Dear Asher,

Today we moved from our one-nighter in the $25 per night hotel with the pool to a $16 per nighter hotel with a shared kitchen. Though the pool was refreshing, we can accomplish this with a cold shower while maintaining good nutrition. In the four weeks since leaving Utila, we have had seven travel days, past Lago Yojoa and through La Ruta Lenca, with 31 hours spent on chicken buses. It was our plan to plunk ourselves in Copan Ruinas for two weeks so we could slow down, stop living out of our packs, and find a place to call home during Christmas.

According to child development specialists, it is easier for babies to learn to walk than to crawl because walking is modeled for them all the time. From day one, you have never really enjoyed spending too much time on your belly so you have preferred assisted walking to crawling. You really started motoring when we were in Utila but today the drunken wobble was looking stronger and more controlled and you can easily adjust your path to get to where you want to go.

By the time we lugged our gear to the new room, unpacked EVERYTHING, hand washed a huge load of laundry and scouted out the produce market, you were ready for a nap. Just as professional athletes use visualization and imagery to improve their performance, it seems as though you dreamed about being able to crawl because the minute you opened your eyes, you shimmied off your mom’s tummy then crawled across the entire bed towards a stuffed animal. We think the child development specialists are correct with the modeling bit because your crawls looked more like downward dogs and you certainly have seen a lot of those. We were so excited that we moved the stuffed animal to the other side of the bed and sure enough, you turned and moved like an inch worm to the other side. These baby steps are constant reminders for us to turn dreams into reality.

Before we left, many people said, “have a blast and we will live vicariously through you.” We are happy to have had more than 14,000 views on our blog so far, and we realize that we all need reminders that any adventure or ideal is better lived than imagined. Budget backpacking travel may not be everyone’s cup of tea, yet there are many other dreams not being realized. We also understand that most often the barrier to realizing the ideal is impatience with the little baby steps required to reach a goal. As the large motivational posters accurately point out; small improvements are the key to staggering long-term results. Asher, you are modeling this for us everyday and remind us that it doesn’t matter how slow you go, as long as you don’t stop. Whether it is scratching at the flaps in your book, pinching your fingers to pick up a small leaf on the floor, or inch worming across the bed, you often captivate us with your focus on the next step.

Though you will not have many memories of this trip, it is our wish that one day when you are feeling like the journey to your dreams is too difficult, you will read about your adventures on the road and in human development and find the motivation to take the next step. Because as the posters remind us; sometimes the smallest step in the right direction ends up being the biggest step of your life. Tiptoe if you must but take the step.

(Click this link to see the video of Asher crawling for the first time).
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GhtTv-qq10w