Traveling has become one of the most significant elements of my life. However it wasn’t always accessible to me. Ever since I was a small girl, I rarely had the chance to go outside of my hometown. I had grown up in a small family with parents that worked both day and night. Very much like the Sun and Moon, they could only align during an eclipse. Thus, it was a rare occurrence for us to go out and explore what this world had to offer, and it was understandable. But, regardless of my understanding of our circumstances, I still couldn’t help simply dreaming of seeing the Eiffel Tower in Paris or dolphins in Hawaii. I wanted to know what it felt like to touch snow. Was it just as soft as it had looked in movies? Just imagining the smell of tacos straight from Mexico would tug at my taste buds along with my craving for authentic pho from Vietnam. The world to me was and still is just too big not to explore, but I never knew if that time would come.

Quite a number of years have passed since then. And if I could go back in time, I would go back and tell little me not to worry. For the me in the future was able to bring those dreams I dared to dream, all into reality.

Traveling to me is like a breath of fresh air. Traveling was as if I was a young bird first learning how to fly, and as soon as I grasped a good gust of wind, I finally took off to see what the world had in store for me. Traveling, was the one outlet thus far that has allowed me to feel as though I was a little kid all over again. Everything seemed new. The gas stations astonished me in every place that I had gone to, and the food was often times a unique surprise. Traveling is something that I genuinely enjoy doing, because it filled up that bucket of dreams that little me would hold out endearingly.

And so I was off. I started small with short road trips like going to Big Bear then I found myself in Las Vegas Nevada. With my family, I saw my first hill of snow in Big Bear and was shock from the contrasting night life and energy in Vegas. Nevertheless, I loved the experience and yearned for what more my future travels had to offer. But, I was definitely scared. Scared of going on a plane without my parents… “Where do I go? What do I say and what do I do?” Also, I was very much concerned with “Where am I going to get all the money needed for a trip like this?” Alas, it was when I had enough confidence and had been working, I decided to go on my first trip without my family. I can recall like it was yesterday, the adrenaline rush surging through me from head to toe. Oh Dallas Texas I will never forget you! Thereon, trip after trip had passed and I had gone to many more locations within the country such as Seattle Washington, Austin Texas, Baltimore Maryland, Pennsylvania, Arizona, Hawaii, and Mexico, with still much more to discover.

By going on these trips, I was able to learn so much about the culture and grow an appreciation for my at-home lifestyle. I am a girl in her twenties who is literally working a part-time job, and deciding to travel the world.. like who just does that as a twenty-something year old? I could just be focusing on school and work but here I am. Sure, I sometimes think about the money I could have saved. But those thoughts are fleeting compared to the memories I’ve made. It’s these moments—snowboarding, exploring, connecting—that I know I’ll carry for life. The world is just too big for us to miss out on in our one and only lifetime. And so, I discovered at that moment that money wasn’t necissarily the key to happiness, but it can open doors to see and do more things.

The world is too big to stay in one place, and life is too short to leave dreams waiting. So, where will you choose to go next?

Quotes that keep me going

“In the end, we only regret the chances we didn’t take.” – Lewis Carroll

“If it scares you, it might be a good thing to try.” – Seth Godin

“Only those who will risk going too far can possibly find out how far one can go.” – T.S. Eliot

“It’s never too late to be what you might have been.” – George Eliot

“To live is the rarest thing in the world. Most people exist, that is all.” – Oscar Wilde

“The biggest adventure you can take is to live the life of your dreams.” – Oprah Winfrey

“Collect moments, not things.”