Traveling 1000 Miles to Dig in the Dirt

I read recently that once you reach your thirties, you start longing for and liking the same things you did as a child. I started thinking more about this because I found that was absolutely happening to me. The difference for me between now and then though? More freedom to pursue those things – more financial freedom, more control over my time, less chance for ridicule and bullying from my peers (hopefully- so far so good).

Sometimes I realize how thankful I am to be an adult and in my thirties. When I was younger, this was the time and age I was looking forward to, specifically due to the reasons above. I also realized that I was WASTING IT! Wasting time, resources, mind space with constantly worrying about this thing and that thing, even creating scenarios that I could stress about when nothing was readily coming to mind…yep.

That paired with the impending prospect of my mortality, I decided - enough was enough! I thought back to that 10-year-old, the one longing for adventure, meaningful experiences, and a well-lived tenacious life and that I should pursue those things for her while I’m still healthy enough to dream.

Bottom line? I wanted that 10-year-old to be so incredibly proud that she grew up to be…me.

Picture it – my 90’s living room in the booming, bustling town of Sylacauga, Alabama. I’m glued to the television watching the very movie that would give me nightmares for the next 6 years (I mean wake up screaming and running down the hallway). The very movie that would also solidify my love for the great unknown, the insight that this world is bigger than me and my problems, and the joy that is science fiction where anything can happen. For those who know me well, they already know what I’m talking about. I can’t go more than a few days without mentioning…

Jurassic Park

When I answer the question of who I’d like to have dinner with, alive or dead, my answer is Michael Crichton. I’ve read most of his books now and have an MC section in my library. He was a physician and literary mastermind.

 Why does this matter?

I watched Jurassic Park during my formative years and was greatly influenced by the characters in the movie and later the book. People really had careers digging and finding dinosaur bones! Creatures that walked the same land as me millions upon millions of years ago, a reality that my small brain has trouble computing.

The earth has been through so many cycles and changes and here I was worrying about what this person thought about my hair or what that person thought about my teeth. Or why I said that stupid thing to someone who probably wasn’t paying attention to what I was saying anyway.

Talk about realizing perspective.

My childhood self would absolutely love that I’m a nurse practitioner who has dedicated her very existence to helping others. But she would be equally ecstatic if my job consisted of delicately brushing dust away from rocks, out in the 100-degree heat, with no indoor bathroom in the vicinity (those with IBS – if you know, you know).

Fast-forward to my current interest in visiting national parks across the country and just trying to find something different. It was in this search that the energy of the past child collided with the fate of the future (or something like that) and I found myself with a paintbrush in hand, on hands and knees, in 100-degree heat, a port-a-potty in sight (thank you to God for creating the person who created those), and uncovering ACTUAL dinosaur bones on an expedition at The Wyoming Dinosaur Center.

Cue fangirl scream here.

A mecca for adult dinosaur enthusiasts alike (or children), The Wyoming Dinosaur Center (WDC), located in Thermopolis, Wyoming offers a “Dig for a Day” program.

This program has uncovered over 14,000 bones from 3 main excavation sites. While you don’t get to keep the bones, being a part of these discoveries and knowing that these fossils will be well cared for by the experts at the facility is more than enough!

If digging in the dirt does not sound riveting to you, the center offers education on prepping, molding, and casting fossils. There are also other education sessions or internships to participate in.

The WDC has been discovering massive amounts of fossils in just 3 main dig sites. Our site (very fun) was known as the B.S. site.

While it stands for something more descriptive and literal (Beside Sauropod), it was fun to call it by it’s initials. While there are likely other sites around the area that house dinosaur fossils, these sites just keep producing, so they just keep digging.

While we spent hours hunched over with the tedious task of brushing dirt away from fossils, we would occasionally lift our eyes to the horizon. It's beautiful to look at, but what I sense is harder to describe - the rhythmic greens carrying the whisper of the past so delicately into the present, never wanting to disrupt the living.

The process of uncovering such delicate fossils is not for the faint of heart. It can take hours upon hours to uncover a small fragment of a fossil with care taken to ensure minimal damage.

Sun coverage is a must and those knee cushions? The difference between a good day and a bad day.

While you're witnessing an absolute dream come true in this article and in these photos, you'll also witness a stent of grumpiness. This is hard work, so come prepared. I thought I had made MUCH more progress than what my work showed :)

Respect.

For some enlightenment - these were my Kelly-designated tools! One chisel, one paintbrush, one small broom with dustpan, childhood ambitions, adult knees, and a determined spirit.

THIS. This was the dinosaur discovered at the B.S. dig site (one of MANY). This camarasaurus is so tall, it was difficult to get a full picture with us both.

The camarasaurus (meaning chambered lizard) walked the earth around 145-155 MILLION years ago during the Jurassic-Cenomanian period.

The rest of it - This camarasaurus is comprised of 1,836 bones and took over 20 YEARS to assemble!

Please note that these dinosaurs were considered "small" during this time period. What the?!?

Visiting the WDC was part of a larger trip to Yellowstone National Park. The entire place was magical, and I can’t even begin to describe the absolute awe and wonder of that entire state, but I will say that the WDC drew me there in the first place.

My manager (e.g., 10-year-old me) compelled me to go dig for fossils, but she didn’t realize how spectacular and meaningful the journey would be.

I return to those memory archives on a regular basis, the reverence of this place and collision with those memories never far from my superficial thoughts.

And when my mind inevitably returns to those places that I can't seem to remove myself from - places where I don't feel good enough, smart enough, capable enough, pretty enough, strong enough. Places where I constantly berate myself for how I look or things I say or said 5 years ago, I promise to think of you, the girl who always looked for the beauty in herself, the world, and the people who inhabit it. I promise to look at you, really look at you, smile, and wave back from this new place in time and space that separates me from you.

To 10-year-old Kelly, you were right all along. You knew, even then, that life would be fleeting and burdensome, but oh so meaningful if you focused on the right things, the good things, the overlooked and forgotten things, the things that smile back, the majesty in the mundane, the things that make you feel big but humble, and the things that make you feel small.

And how amazing it is to be this small.

I remain captivated by my experience on this trip, so much so that I don’t think I’ll ever escape the echoes reverberating from the past - the very spirits of those creatures and life forces (and our past selves) long gone, but never ever forgotten.

Adan's favorite dinosaur (Triceratops) and my favorite dinosaur (Tyrannosaurus Rex) side by side.

Us side by side in the same order :)

 Stay true to yourself. The rest will follow.

Dr. V