Happy springtime, folks!
As a Washington resident, I am happy to announce that we’re currently experiencing our first bout of summer the past couple of weeks. We’re getting some Vitamin D, I am actually seeing sun stream through my living room window, and my 4 chihuahuas can frolic (aka wild-ass zoomies) in our backyard. Honestly, Home is sounding very idyllic, especially during this time of year — which makes the timing of this blog funny, because I’m about to tell you why I love to travel.
Here’s the thing, though: let’s dispute a myth that you have to go very far to travel. One of the biggest lessons I’m learning this year as a traveler is that anything can be an adventure if you make it so. Trust me on this!
I’ve been traveling ever since I was a kid. I grew up in the backseat of a Toyota HiAce on many road trips across the vast expanse of Luzon, the Philippines’ northern region, back when I had to bring a Walkman and a little booklet of CDs or listen to my dad sing himself awake with a mixed CD of Filipino ballads, Toni Braxton, and David Pomeranz. Whether it was a three-hour trip to see my Ima (grandma) or waking up at the break of dawn to drive to the city of pines, I enjoyed every bit of watching the scenery go by (or knocking my head against the window when I slept).
Okay, enough backstory — let me tell you why you should travel this year. And if you were looking for a sign, let me be explicit and say, “DO IIIIIIIT.”
#1: You deserve a break.
A very wise ecopsychologist told me a theory about why we get seasonal depression in the winter. They said that back in the day, farmers and even hunters and gatherers would work very hard during the summer because of the longer hours and the glorious weather to prepare for the winters where they would need to preserve their energy due to limited resources and harsh conditions. Translation: our bodies, minds, and spirits need balance between working hard and rest and rejuvenation. Literally, we cannot sustain working all the time if we don’t get a break every now and then to rest, recharge, and relax. Our bodies weren’t designed to do that!
So if you were wanting some random stranger to justify traveling for you, I GOTCHU AND I HAVE THE CREDENTIALS TO PROVE IT! I am a licensed mental health counselor during the week (and on the occasional weekend), and I believe the only thing I’m allowed to prescribe is a care break. Traveling is a great way to do that! It temporarily switches up a routine, which creates novelty, avoids exhaustion, and makes you feel alive again. It’s good for your brain chemistry, or else you’ll be like those folks in the Good Place whose brains turned to mush because nothing was different for them anymore.
#2: You get to learn new things.
Omg, the best thing about adult money is doing things you didn’t get to do as a kid. When my husband and I visited Spain earlier this year, one of my husband’s requests was to go on an ATV tour. As a kid, this was only something I watched my older cousin (hey, Manoy Bats HEHE) express desire to do and not something I ever imagined I could do on my own. Y’all, when I say that I had the time of my life, I think it’s an understatement. Driving from pavement to dirt roads, to watching the gorgeous green hills make way to the glittering Mediterranean sea, and stopping to enjoy the views are things permanently etched in my sensory and muscle memory. Even now, two months later, it feels like I just rode my first ATV yesterday, and I cannot wait to do it again.
The best thing about certain moments in life is that like Goosebumps, you truly get to choose your own adventure. My husband and I were lucky to have chosen Spain as one of our international adventures, but trust me when I say you don’t have to go that far. This is a lesson I’m learning myself — find the adventure in the hidden nooks and crannies of home. Whether that’s driving ten minutes away to a park you’ve never been to, or trying out a new restaurant a few towns over with cuisine you’ve never tasted, adventure isn’t too far away if you know where to look. I am a huge fan of always trying everything once, and if you don’t like it, then it’s one new thing you know about yourself! How are you supposed to know what you like or don’t like if you haven’t tried it? I’m so stoked if you decide to tap into your inner courage and try something new — any adventure takes a smidge of bravery, so congratulations in advance on taking those first or continued steps.
#3: YOLO! Jk — well, half a joke. You do only live once.
My husband and I discovered Lake Louise through an Instagram reel (I know, my husband watches Instagram reels). This trip did not disappoint — we stopped through different campgrounds on the drive to Lake Louise, which was about 12 hours away from our Home, and it was our first international road trip together. This was a trip that we semi-spontaneously planned. We slept in our trusty RAV4 with two dogs, packed up every morning to make it to Lake Louise, and after watching the sunrise, we powered through 12 hours of driving to sleep in our bed one night sooner than we intended to because our car was a little too warm to sleep in even with two solar-powered fans. Was it an ideal trip? Not necessarily. But was it one for the books? Absolutely.
One thing I’ve learned from traveling, whether it be from my trips with my family growing up or with my husband and my new little family now, is that it’s not going to be perfect. There are probably folks with even crazier stories than mine about their travels, like losing a passport or their phone, and those things can be stressful and discouraging for those who haven’t traveled before. Your trip is definitely going to have some stressors, some road bumps and hiccups, and sometimes even the best planned trips don’t go as planned for one reason or the other. But sometimes they do, too! We just won’t know that until we go for ourselves.
If traveling is on your mind and you’re hesitant, that’s totally okay. You don’t have to be gung-ho about it right away; it is scary, stressful, and a bit of a leap. But hey, you only live once. Do you want to look back at your life and wish you went on that trip, or sought out that adventure? Or do you want to look back at your life and reflect on the amazing and hard lessons you’ve learned about yourself, other people, and the big, beautiful world we live in? And ultimately, my friend, that’s your choice.
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If I’m being honest, the reason why I’m going on adventures this year is because I want to, period. HAHAHAHA. But if you’re a person who needed a little more convincing, I hope this blog helped. Leave a comment below and tell me why you travel, or why you choose not to! (No disrespectful comments, please, or they will be deleted and I will literally have no regrets about it. Kthanksbyeeeeee.)
cass in neverland 