Cod-name "To Hug Sequoia"

by Zulfiia Kamalova (Russia)

I didn't expect to find USA

Los Angeles was just a gateway for us, we were strangers, who neither were a part of the wealth of Beverly Hills nor the glory of Hollywood. But all we wanted was to find a way to reach our dream, we even had a code-name which was "To Hug Sequoia". I said, “There’s no reason to wait anymore, the idea of hitchhiking is terrible, we are here longer than we planned. It's time to take the bus tickets to San Francisco and keep going.” Fedor responded, “Right, I wish I had had driving license, we could just rent a car, reach the place on time and see sequoias on the way. You know, if it doesn’t happen, I’ll have to return to America again.” Fedor and I started thinking, we were confused and didn’t know how to figure it out. After a couple of minutes, the sound of the message interrupted the silence. The message was from Adil, a guy from the app where we were looking for fellow travelers several days ago, “Are you sure you want to go to Sequoia? It is most likely the roads are covered with snow”. When we were so close to give up we were held under the wing of one of the best families on this planet. I felt something special -- unconditional kindness and love. Adil and his family decided to drive us to Sequoia National Park. We set on the back of the car with their children -- Shanni and Raza. Next morning, we reached Sequoia National Park. I couldn’t believe my eyes, these trees were magical and giant. When I hugged a tree, I felt strong connection with the universe and so much love which I have never experienced before. Later on Adil shared his story. Adile said, “Once I had everything: a big house, inheritance, and a family business, but I was sad and lonely. I decided to leave that life, because I was tired of pretending to be somebody else. And then I left Pakistan to start a new life here in the USA. I realized that the most important thing was to be yourself. But I got a lot more than I ever expected.” Adil looked at Anna. He continued, “We studied together. She kept me at a distance for a while. By the end of my studies, I did not believe that we would ever be together. Before going to the airport back to Pakistan, I came to say goodbye. And at that moment she asked me to stay. And I stayed here forever.” It seemed that when I tried to hug the sequoia, I wanted to hug the whole universe through it. When I was looking at him, speaking about his family, I felt this connection with the universe again. We continued the trip, and sitting in the car I realized I was just like Adil, I wanted to see Sequoias but I got more than I ever expected.