Ross Borden: Get Out There.
Americans don’t travel much. Only 33 percent of us even own a passport, a figure that’s been inflated since immigration began requiring more than a driver’s license to visit Cancun. With this being the number one destination Americans make it to abroad, we can safely assume the percentage of us who visit countries in addition to Mexico is much lower.
I was lucky enough to travel when I was younger and caught the bug at an early age. After going on to study abroad in Spain, work in Kenya, and spend time “in between jobs” in Argentina, I can look back and point to travel as the most significant source of education in my life. Along the way, I’ve observed the numerous benefits that travel offers people who make it a priority. And I’ve witnessed firsthand how friendly, open-minded American travelers, simply by making the effort to travel to faraway places, can tear down stereotypes and spread a message of peace.
Travel is fatal to prejudice, bigotry, and narrow mindedness, and many of our people need it sorely on these accounts. Broad, wholesome, charitable views of men and things cannot be acquired by vegetating in one little corner of the Earth all one’s lifetime.
When you travel, you often find yourself in need of assistance from strangers. You might be lost and needing directions; you may even be looking for a meal and place to stay the night. Throughout my travels, I’ve been continually shocked by the warmth and generosity of the complete strangers I’ve encountered.
It is so healthy for humanity as a whole to know that most people are good, and that in 99 percent of situations, we can count on and trust one another. The only things holding us back from unlocking this optimism and a better world are fear and excuses. Put them aside and we will all have a more enlightened America.
