I started saying "I caught the travel bug," but now I think i'll just call myself a bird. I can fly anywhere on earth, see all the sights I've dreamed of seeing, and return home if and when I want.
I daydream about travel all the time - probably more so than I should. I think about where I should go next, what kinds of things I can do once I am there and what it will take to get me there.
I dream up ideas, big and small, and make a mental note to add them to the list. I contemplate the idea of traveling alone or with friends. Depending on the location, both options can work. I've traveled alone before and am more than OK with doing it again. I am, however, conscious of my safety and do take that into consideration.
Although, when considering travel partners, it seems like I am the only one who doesn't have something tying me down. Rather, it seems I am the only one who won't let anything tie me down.
I've talked to numerous friends about travel plans and all to often I hear the response "I would love to, but I can't," followed by some explanation as to why they are unable to accompany me or to take trips of their own. Some of these explanations I understand and others I do not. To each their own.
I use to say "I can't," as well. When I stopped saying it, I booked my flight to Paris and began my European backpacking adventure. It was almost as if a weight had been lifted off my shoulders. A weight that had been keeping me from doing anything outside the norm. The norm being work, school, life in Reno (or one's respective city), the constant ebbs and flows of life being lived in a singular place.
When I made that first purchase, a spark lit up inside me. The gears in mind started turning and I thought to myself, "Why did I ever feel like these things were impossible? Why did I ever think that this particular piece of what I wanted in life was out of reach?"
Aside from financial or physical restrictions, this little birdy can't comprehend what would disable someone from getting exactly what they want out of life. Don't get me wrong - I do understand there are many reasons as to why one might not be able to travel, however most of the time, the reasons are things that can seemingly be overcome.
Personally, it was fear that was holding me back. Fear of doing something outside the boundaries I was generally comfortable with. Fear of change. Fear of the unknown (what may or may not happen while traveling). Fear of financial stability once the adventure ended.
Once I let go of that fear and realized "I can" travel, I can go on adventures, I can live life in more places than just my comfort zone, I did. And, I plan to do it again.
This doesn't mean that I am going to quit my job today and become a travel blogger who the followers know as Nomadic Katie (not that a job title and job description like that wouldn't rock my world), but it does mean that I am not going to let anything keep me from my dreams of travel and adventure. Not money, not a job, not a man, not anything. Even if it starts to seem like it can't be done, it can. Nothing is impossible, the word itself says "possible."
"A bird sitting on a tree is never afraid of the branch breaking because her trust is not in the branch, but in her own wings. Believe in yourself."
