Stanley, an out of work tech writer, is deeply unsatisfied with the lack of meaning in his life. Of the three places he feels should provide meaning in his life—religion, work, and family—only one gives his life purpose: family.

In PART ONE, his lack of meaning starts to change. Out of desperation to support his family, he takes a short-term contract job on the other side of the country. He cannot afford to fly, so he packs his car for the cross-country journey.

The trip gets strange almost immediately when he reluctantly picks up a hitchhiker who transforms Stanley's religious views by answering questions that have kept religion at arm's length.