..... those were the words of consolation from my friend, Berit, when I expressed sadness about our great adventure coming to and end. I am getting there!
Back to the future
When we flew home from New Zealand, I felt like I was leaving the movie theater in the middle of a wonderful movie not knowing how it would end! We arrived home on March 4, but I still feel a bit lost and that life is surreal. Honestly, I didn't want to come home; I have none of my immediate family in Canada, and I had to start finding work, which was a bit scary.
Strangers had been living in our home, and it felt like I had lived here in a previous life. It was like moving back in again; putting the clothes back in the closet and retrieving things from storage. Feeling rings on the fingers again just underlined the feeling of strangeness. Furthermore, our stuff is overwhelming; the contrast between what we have been happily used to living with for eight months and what we own is shocking! I have so much clothes to choose from......
 |
| Being on top of the world has a wonderful way of making me feel more grounded! |
I felt a certain restlessness having been addicted to constant stimulation. My brain is left with twiddling its cerebral thumbs, unsure what to do with the excess hours. Emotionally, I was in no hurry to start working, I needed to adjust as well as time to find my center again.
"There are only two ways to live your life: One is as though nothing is a miracle.
The other is as though everything is a miracle.”
Travel Is Transformational!
It taught me about the world, how to navigate unknown situations, and learn to go with the flow. It made me a better me. No one ever comes back home and said “Wow! Travelling sucks.” People come back from trips with a greater appreciation for life for a reason. Once you travel and experience other cultures, your perception of the world changes. It also taught me about the commonality people around the world share. We are not so different after all.
“I am not the same having seen the moon shine on the other side of the world.”
Mary Anne Radmacher
Why do I find myself looking quizzically at everything to try to figure out what is different? Everything feels different while nothing has really changed. Everyone looks exactly the same - I feel like a totally different person. But it is difficult to explain what that 'felling different' is! I know that the journey have made a difference to us, to the way we feel about ourselves, each other and the world. Now I feel an obligation to do something with it - to make it more than simply an extended holiday.
The questions most people have asked us is the traditional travel story questions: What did you like the most? What were your highlights? Those are difficult questions to answer, believe it or not, as every place and country had something special to offer.The real travel story is the internal journey! Emotions, changes that makes the experience special. The single best thing was the total absence of responsibility. Feeling of freedom. Self-indulgent time. It has been an existential detox!
"People don’t take trips . . . trips take people."
John Steinbeck
Andy:
Well, it's been just over two months back, and I still feel like an outsider looking in. I think part of it is that I am substitute teaching and don't have my job back till September. It is really funny when people at work say 'you haven't changed at all"! Inside there has been a deep change in me. I see the world differently. I am thinking that someday in the future I might want to combine my love of travel with working.
As per usual, what I do and have right now makes me very comfortable. Do I want to take the risk? This is something I have to decide in the next year or two. I don't want to be sitting in my rocking chair someday wishing I had done something!
"The only courage you ever need is the courage to live the life you want."
Oprah Winfrey
As mentioned, the most common question we were asked when we came back was, "What was your favorite place?". At first, we tried to answer this question, but we quickly realized that over such a long trip there is no defining moment. There were maybe 15-20 wows that just don't compete with one another. Walking 4 km largely by ourselves in a cave in Vietnam is totally different than walking through a mountainous active volcanic area in New Zealand.
So where to go from here...
Since I have returned to Vancouver, I have routinely had the best sleeps in the last 15 years. I am formulating a plan to try to reduce my stress when I return to full time teaching next year. This includes getting to work earlier, and not marking tests when I am tired. No school work after 8 pm. I also hope to get better prepared, instead of following my patented organized chaos system! I can find anything in a pile of papers but not sure if that is something to be proud of!!
As I near the end of my teaching career, I am looking forward to doing some mentoring next year. Great to have the opportunity to pass on some of my knowledge and expertise.
I have also re-started the Outdoor Club next year at school. Great to pass on my love of nature to the younger generation. Hopefully my cranky, ageing body will cooperate!
Finally, travel has become a big part of my life again. It is a lot easier to do once your children are older. In September, we will start saving for the next one. I would love to travel for two years straight! Easier said then done!! This is only one chapter in a long book!
"It is never too late, to be what you might have been."
George Eliot
If You Don't Go, You Won't Have A Story
Stop thinking you are not ready. Nobody ever feels 100% ready when an opportunity arises. Most great opportunities in life force us to grow beyond our comfort zone, which means we won't feel totally comfortable at first.
Age is just a number. There are all ranges of ages traveling all over and around the world. We saw several people older than us bicycling in the Mekong Delta, climbing up Poon Hill to see the sunrise, and there were all types carrying just backpacks through airports and bus/train stations. It’s a cliche, but you’re not getting any younger, so just go for it. You don’t have to plan to go all the way around the world in one trip either. Start your adventure small and let it grow from there.
Don't wait too long - tomorrow never comes. Too often we try to wait for the perfect time to travel, that time when all the stars align, but that time never comes.
Time goes by so fast when travelling, so be sure to stop once in a while and marvel at the moments you create.
You will never have enough money and there will always be someones wedding, birthday, etc. etc. Don't wait. When you want to go, just go.
"He who is outside his door has the hardest part of his journey behind him."
Dutch proverb
Those are words to live by..... So stop dreaming, and start packing!
Pssst! We are off to Turkey early June for Stephanie and Thomas' wedding, and it is SO exciting.Stay tuned!
.jpg)
