Wanderlust or WanderLost
Do you travel for new experiences or do you travel to run away from the old?
You pack your bags, buy a plane ticket and jet off to somewhere new and exciting. Anticipation and enthusiasm fueling you through every street corner.
You find yourself feeling bliss and an innate sense of happiness
But in the back your mind there is a restlessness that won’t go away.
A feeling that itches away at you.
You know your days here are numbered; that one day the adventure will end.
Do you go on your adventures to experience new and exciting things or to leave behind your old life?
Not many people realize the difference between the two and there’s nothing wrong with that.
In fact it’s something I found myself confusing many times- packing up and leaving in search of some new excitement; exploring the streets of Amsterdam and Paris, Dubai to Tokyo and many more in between.
It wasn’t till I was lost, wandering the lit streets of Paris one night that I found my answer-
I wasn’t on a journey to find myself but rather escape who I already was.
Being lost, far away from my home in Connecticut made me forget the actualities of everyday life.
It provided a temporary release from the stresses of paying bills, going to work or school, having to deal with family and friends.
All I had to focus on was seeing more, living more, experiencing more.
Sadly everything in life is temporary.
In the back of my head I knew my travels would come to an end eventually.
Each step I took wandering foreign streets was a step bringing me closer to home; bringing me back to the realities of life.
It’s funny isn’t it- how we create this everyday life that we constantly want to runaway from?
You shouldn’t have to live a life where you’re only happiness comes from escaping it.
After my trip was over, I carried my epiphany back home with me.
I began identifying every aspect of my life that I was trying to runaway from, even the ones that I lied and convinced myself of otherwise.
The biggest one; life at home seemed like a prison. I’m a 22 year old dropout who lives with my mom in a small valley town, the type of place where you know all your neighbors and everyone in the town over from you.
Nothing new ever happened here.
Life was stagnant.
My escape was from the high of wanderlust.
I decided to take some time off from traveling and work on building a life I don’t need an escape from.
To me that means building a life focused around my passions; writing and digital marketing.
- Writing- something I love to do, a “hobby” that lets me express my inner thoughts fully and voice myself.
- Digital Marketing- a side hustle I’ve become experienced in over the years helping owners build their businesses by leveraging the internet.
The Goal is to use my passions to shift the cause of my traveling from escaping to experiencing- in hopes that it will create a better appreciation for traveling.
I’m not writing this piece to tell you not to travel.
Everyone should once in their lifetime find themselves somewhere completely foreign to them.
It’s a liberating experience to find yourself lost in some foreign street having no one but yourself to rely on to figure things out and as cliche as it is- traveling really does help you find yourself.
This is more of an introspective view on the cause of my wanderlust.
Traveling for an escape may provide temporary fulfillment or happiness, but in the long term it’ll be a high you keep chasing as soon as the realities of life back home takes over again.
So use it as an escape if you need tobut once you’re back home build a life you won’t need to runaway from.
Thank you all for reading! I really hope this reached out and was able to help anyone that’s struggling with their place in life. The journey is complicated but it’s so worth it.
For anyone that still feels lost, feel free to reach out and send me a message (sidrat95@gmail.com)! I’m still trying to figure my own life out but am always around to listen and help.
If you enjoyed this piece, hit the follow button and follow my journey through life as I try and make sense of it!
- Sid
