"I would not like to be in a canoe on the river because it was so big and wide; and yet here I am. I
guess I have gradually become accustomed to the size. There are a lot of things in life like that. If you focus on all
the potential problems, there are many things that you will not even try to begin. However, once you get involved in
doing something, the problems are often not as bad as you first thought. The key is to just take each problem as it
comes and do not be obsessed with the problems not yet here." -- Mississippi HowlAllan Roden was diagnosed with melanoma that had spread. Dianne, his wife of twenty-seven years took a sabbatical from work to spend time with Allan during his last months of life. They had both shared a dream to paddle the length of the Mississippi river, but now it looked like a dream too late to be realized. With nothing left to lose, more than he was about to lose, which was everything, he signed up for a clinical trial testing a new immune therapy. He recovered. The dream of the river was about to come true. Allan and Dianne Roden, with Annie, their Australian Cattle Dog, set off for a river adventure in a small home-made, cedar-strip canoe. As they traveled the Mississippi river, they kept journals, the result being a book called Mississippi Howl.
"With the high water level, campsites were really hard to find again today. We finally found one that was on an island with a sign that said, “Posted DMPD”. Damn if I know what that means. We decided it meant “Dumb Morons Permitted if Desperate” and stopped to set up camp. So far we have had no problems." To read more excerpts and see photos of the trip, visit Dianne's webpage.
