"You’re going away again… there must be something here you’re running away from.”
If you've ever quit your job to pursue travel dreams, you know that such a bold decision raises many questions and doubts amongst your peers. For a lot of people, traveling cannot be a way of life, as there is no box in between “buy a flat”, “pass a master-degree” and “get married” that says “sail across the globe and find out about life”.
While traveling, you meet people with backgrounds as diversified as a Benetton advertising. And if there is one thing I’ve learned, is that there are as many ways of living your life as there are human beings on this planet.
Some people fight to create a home and build a family, others want to get that work promotion to buy a hybrid car, some others are just reassured by routine.
Yet, some people want something different from what the traditional society path pushes on us. They may have an harder time figuring out what they want, or just feel the urge to go satisfy that curiosity burning inside them, and that leads to traveling.
Everyone should find what works best for themselves.
That being said, I’ve travelled once with the hope of my fears and preoccupations staying in Paris while I’d be sipping margarita in sunny Mexico. When booking my flight, I was clearly hoping to run away from the mess happening at home. Easy to guess it did not go as planned.
Running away from responsibilities, problems, fears, relationships doesn’t exist. You might be far from home, but your mind still travels with you – and won’t let you sleep sometimes. Nightmares after nightmares, anxiety freezing my mind and ending up crying in the most beautiful lagoon in the world, I’ve learned the hard way that wherever you might go, whatever you pack, there is one thing you’ll always be bringing with you: yourself.
Traveling is not about saying “fuck it, it’s not working here, things might be simpler somewhere else”. Life won’t be easier anywhere unless we manage to see the blue sky where we currently are.
Let's never forget that freedom and traveling come at a cost. They might cost friends, relationships, homes, carrers. They require compromise, just like any life-changing decision. And everyone has the power to make this decision. The only question to ask ourselves is are we making the most of it?
Traveling is not about “being lucky”, it’s about being bold.
It’s about choosing, being uprooted, lost, amazed, lonely, spiritually lifted.
For me, it’s about being alive.
Would you rather stay safe or stay free?
Know that both come with sacrifices and rewards.
At the end of the day, what’s left of us, if not our stories?
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