I’m back!

That’s right. I am back at it after three years with no posts! Can you believe it? I’m a bit surprised myself. 

When I first created this blog my intentions were to create a distraction for myself. A distraction from the yearning I had to constantly travel. I thought if I created this blog I could write about my passion for travel in hopes that it would fill the void until my next trip. In a way, I had hoped it would be enough to fend off those post travel blues!

The funny thing is by the time I finally got around to starting this blog I had already made a major life change. I left my full time job in the clinic to be a part time tour guide!

If you’ve read my previous posts you will remember that I brought you along on my journey from my first thoughts of a career change to my fears of telling my parents and coworkers to guide training to experiences of my first season on the road.

Although, the blog was satisfying I quickly discovered the importance of living in the moment. I wanted to appreciate the surrounding beauty, the blossoming friendships and epic experiences without continually focusing on my next post. For this reason my interest in the blog started to dwindle. 

Over the next two years I continued with the perfect balance of travel and career. Each year I spent 2-3 months traveling internationally, 3-4 months leading tours across the United States and 5-6 months working in the clinic. With this balance I was content. I didn’t need the blog to fill that travel void and all interest in blogging ceased. 

Fast forward to 2020. Where do I start!? From bushfires in Australia to a cancer diagnosis resulting in cancelled travel plans to a worldwide COVID pandemic to racial injustice to a plastic crisis to important elections and so much more. It’s been a year full of emotions, a year that has turned many lives upside down! 

The never-ending punches of 2020 started to take a toll on my mental health. I felt sad, frustrated, angry, discouraged, afraid, anxious, guilty, lost, unproductive and unaccomplished. Most of these feelings were not new. I had experienced them at some point previously in my life, however the duration of these feelings was new. I was in a funk and something needed to change! 

This is where my friend comes in the picture and one of the many reasons I believe people come into our lives for a reason! Recently, my friend stumbled upon my blog. The very next day he sat me down and encouraged me to start writing again. I was a bit skeptical at first, but maybe this was the change I needed! After some discussion he had me convinced to give it another try!

Now here I am taking that first step back into the blogging world. I’m unsure if my dreams of a successful blog will become reality or not, but I do know that I have one heck of a friend! He believes in me and my writing. Sometimes that’s all you need! Someone to believe in you! 

This belief provided me with hope. The hope I needed to pull myself out of that funk. Now I have something to focus on, something to look forward to, something to fill the void until we can travel again. I am back to doing what I love – TRAVEL. It may not be in the form that I am used to, but I am sharing my passion and that is enough for me! 

My friend deserves a special shout out because without him I probably would not have returned to blogging. However, he’d probably tell you that he’s only repaying the favor. When we first met, I inspired him to pursue one of his dreams, which he is currently working on! 

So there you have it!

“We don’t meet people by accident. They are meant to cross our path for a reason.” -Unknown

There are numerous reasons that my friend’s path and my path have crossed, but one of those reasons was to inspire each other to get back out there and tackle our dreams! I have no doubts that we will continue to cheer for each other as we pursue these dreams. 

Remember, people come into our lives for a reason. Good or bad, big or small, a blessing or a lesson – there’s meaning behind it all. It’s up to you to discover that meaning. 

That’s all for now! Stay tuned for more…