Welcome back to Wanderlusting, our guest author series in which we invite other intrepid travellers to share their most memorable travel moments.
This week Rachel inspires us to grasp the opportunities we crave and strive for the life we desire.
A heart felt and emotive response to realising her own dream of travel, it is sure to inspire.
Watch out, you will likely be persuaded to quit you day job in the next few paragraphs…
THE FREEDOM TO LIVE A LIFE OF TRAVEL
The freedom to either do or not do. The freedom to travel to this place and that or to decide to stay in one area for a while.
Travelling is not necessarily about going to as many places as possible or checking everything off of your bucket list. Travel is about the freedom of doing what YOU want to do.
Travel has helped me to live the life I want to live, not what others tell me is the right way or wrong way.
Growing up, I had travelled around the state of Florida and eventually into other countries during my high school years. Each time, I only travelled for a few weeks at a time on a family vacation.
Although those vacations provided a sense of ‘worldliness’, they weren’t enough.
I wanted more.
GRASPING LIFE WITH BOTH HANDS
I wanted to see places I’d only dreamt about. I wanted to explore the earth’s vast wilderness and photograph its creatures.
I wanted to taste food that would never been found in my local supermarket. I wanted to meet people of different cultures and learn from them. But above all, I wanted a choice.
Then I met Mike, my next door neighbour turned husband.He wanted the same choices in life.
One night we sat down and discussed our future. What did we see for ourselves? Where we happy with what we had accomplished? Or did we feel like something was missing?
Over the past two years we had moved from state to state trying to fill the void but nothing worked. No matter what job we had or what house we lived in, we felt that we were not living the best life we could.What was the point of having the opportunity to choose and not using it?
LIVING THE LIFE WE WANT
Growing up, we were both very fortunate to be part of a stable home that allowed us to go to college, make money and start our adult lives on a high note.
So to be unhappy seemed like a waste.
We were given every opportunity to make the most of our lives and simply put, we weren’t.In hindsight, this is the realization that changed everything. Suddenly, not only did we know what we wanted, but how to make that want, that dream, come to life.
We were on a mission, to make our dreams our first priority in life.The choice was clear, to travel the world how we wanted, when we wanted and how fast or slow we wanted.
We weren’t going to let outside judgement influence our decisions about our life. We are the storytellers of our own lives and looking back, it’s easy to see that travel is meant to be the main theme.
THE TURNING POINT
In November 2013, after a few weeks of summer adventure in Costa Rica, we hit the road. First we travelled up the eastern US while living in our truck, exploring when and where we wanted.
Then we spent two weeks in Nova Scotia completing a house sit and learning how the locals live. After that it was a 10 day road trip through mountains, cities and the great plains of Canada to our current house sit in Alberta.
Next? Who knows!
All we know is that the excitement and freedom we get from travel is something that could never be matched.
Travel has given us the opportunity to look toward the future with excitement and passion while allowing us to look back at the past with fond memories and gratitude.
Eventually, travel may not be something we feel is necessary in our lives. Travel might become the story we pass on to our children.
Or maybe, just maybe, it’ll become a gift we give them as we venture around the world together, taking in new sights, smells, sounds and above all, teaching them the great importance of the freedom of choice.
Do you long for the freedom to travel? Share your comments with me below.