A Dream to Travel Solo
Ever since I was little, I have had this dream to disappear. But let me finish because this dream is different than it sounds. The wish to disappear never came from a place of not wanting to be seen or avoiding myself; it was actually quite the opposite. I’ve always had this desire to have a wondrous experience unlike anything else anyone has ever endeared before. Something that allows me to see myself and the world I’m living in that no one else would really be able to understand. An experience that only I really remember, kind of like a little secret. No matter how much I shared about it with other people, I was the only one there to experience all of the thoughts, emotions, and feelings.
So this desire to disappear has always been more of a desire to go on a journey worthy enough to tell a story about, and in the back of my mind for years, I thought the first time I would solo travel would be one of those stories. So, here is that story.
Our Limiting Distractions
How do you spend your time?
I think most of feel like we don’t have enough of it. It’s something we feel and hear almost everyday. I too am not immune to this feeling. But throughout this entire trip, I felt like I had the perfect amount of time. Not too much, not too little, and I wanted to explore why that was.
Distractions correlate to this fleeting nature of time, and it is sometimes challenging to put the finger on what those distractions might be. They’re not always tangible. Distractions can simply be thoughts, conversations we have in our heads, or pressure to do something. Good or bad, distractions have us lingering in a state of tension between the thing distracting us and the thing we mean to be doing. However, I didn’t fully ascertain the consequences of such distractions until I was in a state without them.
Solo traveling had me farther from the daily distractions than I had ever been before. It might me realize how much of my time I was using in a sense that I deemed productive versus unproductive, and realized the potential of time. Especially when we do things on “our own time.”
Taking Control Over Your Time
Without these typical pressures and ponders, life seemed to have a gentler flow to it. Sure, when there isn’t much to do other than galavant around an evergreen country with charming fall colors, this flow certainly comes a little easier. But even within this easeful flow, it still taught me the power of using our time intentionally.
What is your “draw to purpose?” Or what is your “ draw to purposeful behavior?” These are behaviors, actions and thoughts we pursue to gain a deeper sense of purpose.
When we do things on our own time, that is our own, inspired, time, that is when we feel the most fulfilled. This doesn’t have to be time spent alone either; it can be spent with others. The point of it is that it makes us feel rich and wholesome within our being and how we connect to the rest of the world. We are given a sense of power when it comes to seeking out our greatest good. Whatever choice we have in the matter, that is the control we have. Everything we can do differently or in multiple ways is the power we can harness to change our own realities.
Determining our “wants”
So then, how does one make these choices and take control over our individual lives so that they are shaped for the better? In that case, I think we have to decide what we want. For a long time, I have stated that my goal in life is to be happy and mindful. That I can still say is true, though it’s missing an important piece. Because truthfully, I don’t just want to be happy. It’s not enough. I like the search within life. I like writing my story. I like seeking things. I like creating goals for myself, whether small or big and taking steps to achieve those. Sure, this may detour from a more Buddhist way of thinking, but ultimately, most of us probably aren’t going to sit in a place of enlightenment for the majority of our lives. I would argue that most of us will always want more. And maybe rather than denying that innate nature of seeking and wanting more, we can accept it and use it within a more constructive context.
In fact, accepting this as an innate truth about myself and using it to propel my life forward has led me to be more content and mindful. I think this is because when we are chasing something or have a goal, we suddenly have a reason to be spending our time mindfully. Living for the sake of living can be challenging, but living for greater purpose and meaning, whatever that may mean for each of us, inspires intentional and focused action. It compels us to start doing things on our own time, in defiance of the things that keep us distracted. It compels us to concentrate on the potential we have and ways to achieve it.
