02/07/2024
“You are ALWAYS traveling!” ::With a tone of jealousy, appreciation, confusion or annoyance::
I hear this often. So I’m here to give my official answer.
1. Unless you are 65+ I’m going to assume you probably don’t know what chronic pain is like. I have battled with crippling arthritis, fatigue, internal bleeding and anemia..plus some other not so fun physical battles. YOU ARE NOT GUARANTEED TO BE ABLE TO TRAVEL AFTER RETIREMENT. (Not in an aggressive tone- just want to emphasize this point for you 😇). The positive to chronic illness is you have gratitude in the moments of relief, so you capitolize on it. When my joints can handle long flights, I will be enjoying every. Pain. Free. Moment.
2. I want to be intentional with my husband and my loved ones.
As a business owner, I am constantly pulled in different directions. It is so easy to say “oh he will always be there” or “I’ll see them later” and prioritize those that don’t pour into me. When I travel, I put my phone down (other than pictures) and I make our wants and desires the top priority. This intentionality needs to become so routine that I can feel any disconnect before I become numb to the feeling of being apart.
3. Experiencing new places and activities together bonds us and helps us learn new things about each other. There is ALWAYS something new to learn about your partner. Stay curious.
4. Seeing the world and its different cultures keeps my perspective balanced. It’s easy to get wrapped up in our own little world. Realizing other places do it differently, and they do it WELL challenges my thinking. Recognizing my own privilege as an American makes me grateful instead of resentful. And realizing how many civilizations have made it through hardships and still press on gives me hope that we can make it through anything life throws at us.
5. Being able to be in nature and experiencing so many INCREDIBLE places reminds me of how creative God is. Nature reminds me that God is living and active. He creates cycles of healing in every living thing. With each new wonder I’m blessed to see, I find how very small I am. If He can take care of every fish, tree and ocean…He can take care of me.
So please don’t throw shade on the fact that I prioritize travel. I paint my own nails and wear dresses from 10 years ago. My shoes are torn up. But I will put every extra dollar in my travel funds because for me, it’s healing.
I hope you choose to travel more. 💜 you deserve it.
