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| Processing birds for the Tropical MAPS program in El Salvador |
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| Me in the viewing and research tower of the Costa Rica, CA rainforest: La Selva |
Not just once, twice, or three times, I can't even count the number of times I have realized that the answer to my problems lay out there... in the world... I needed to travel.
Sometimes life hands you a curve ball (cliche I know, but true), and you need to regain your sense of self. For me the best way to do this is to get away. Funny right?! But extending myself into new, maybe uncomfortable or strange situations always brings me back to my center. As a twenty something individual, travel was always my answer. If I didn't have a job, I traveled. If I had a job and needed some rejuvination, I traveled. If I didn't know what the purpose of life was, I traveled. If I knew what job I wanted and needed more experience, I traveled. So many of my acquaintances were never daring, confident, or nice enough to themselves to let themselves take a break and travel. It sort of became my mission in life to never let life get in the way of traveling.
Now that I'm in my early 30's, traveling hasn't slowed down. Lucky me! I've been so incredibly lucky. In fact, travel and luck have led me down a path of stimulating academic ventures, marvelous volunteer stints, and meeting the man of my dreams, my husband Ernesto. As I grow into my mid- and late- 30's I plan on continuing to travel. It's an insatiable wanderlust that drives me to explore, feel, taste, touch, smell, hear, and BE in the new natural and constructed environments, cultures, music, and foods.
As a woman, traveling is liberating, especially when you face your fears of traveling solo (of course being very cautious all the way). To quote the Disney movie Pocahontas (I know, I'm a Disney nerd) "You'll learn things you never knew you never knew." When you're out there figuring out your itinerary, budget, and what triggers your enthusiasm, you find out that change can be good. And, that there's no one "normal."
So, my mantra - TRAVEL. Don't wait until you have more time, money, energy, retirement funds, the mortgage paid off, the kids grown, or whatever other factors in life you may view as an obstacle. You should make time for travel; you'll learn and share love with other people you encounter along the way. Travel will regenerate your love for life, and give you peace of mind.
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| Ernesto and I at friend Peter's wedding in | Grand Teton National Park. |
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| A giant Fig Tree in the Peruvian Amazon with buttress roots |
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