So, do you travel?
I was born in Cape Breton Canada and 2 weeks later I was on a plane to London UK because my father worked there. My family is Canadian and my Dad had a job in Uxbridge, UK that he traveled back and forth from London for. It’s amazing now when I revisit because Uxbridge is simply a stop on the Tube station whereas as a child growing up in the 70s and 80s it seemed a long car ride away.
So, I’ve been traveling since I was young.
I wasn’t always the best traveler as a child. I always asked if it had a pool or tuna sandwich on the menu. That was my definition of a make or break hotel.
This is before there was anything like AirBnB, Uber or even online booking machines like Expedia, Travelocity and more.
With the great pause we all went through I didn’t travel anywhere for a good while.
When I did, I went to the eWomenNetwork Platinum conference in Newport Beach, California and the sun was divine. We met, we saw, we conquered!
California from Nova Scotia is a commitment for travel. Can involve 2-3 flights and you always start early in the morning and end up tired and excited by the time California wakes up due to the time zone difference. I experience jet lag whenever I go past Eastern Time Zone.
I remember as a child there was one trip we came back from after meeting up with Dad’s friends in Thailand that I didn’t want to leave because the mother of the kids there was so super nice to me. She was a US citizen living abroad with her family while her husband worked in the oil industry.
She definitely left an impression on me. Her first name was Patty.
It was such a fun time with her and her family. So, when my parents took me to the airport and we loaded onto the plan and I realized I wouldn’t see her again I burst into tears and had a full on tantrum at age 5 of leaving this person behind. This is of course, before the Internet – before email, before ICQ, before text messages… we were forever broken in communicating.
However, I never forgot her.
Because even as a child what I learned from traveling is that you’re taken out of your element and forced to survive in a completely different environment. Meeting new people, seeing different cultures, experiencing a completely different geography around you physically and emotionally.
Yet, we can also be still completely alone. Even in a crowd and a new place that welcomes us.
Being part of a group is an amazing experience. Feeling loved and accepted is an amazing time. But what happens when you’re outside of your element and your views and beliefs get challenged. Not just by one person or one experience but by an entire country that has a completely different take on values, communication and language, acceptable practices, and ongoing legal system nuances… what happens when all of that collides with who you are.
And this can happen when you travel.
So, no matter where you go… remember the love you have in your personal community and open your heart up to new experiences.
Shine that light, bright!
Yours in health,
Tara
