Following all of the interactions I've had up to this point in my trip, having my brother by my side is bringing together all of my reasons for why I travel. I don't think I fully knew why I so desired to travel - other than I want to - until all of my recent experiences and interactions slowly, but surely, brought all to fruition.
It's hard to explain to someone who maybe hasn't traveled, or someone who maybe doesn't think of people like I do - someone who doesn't think beyond their sight, or beyond their ears. Perhaps it would be a challenge if you never left your home state, or maybe you focused on the designated "priorities" of life that culture has laid out for you. Maybe you never were told that you could look outside of your box - that it is completely possible to live in a whole new world and to create your own entirely unique traditions and lifestyle.
I was told that the best response for someone who asks why I travel is silence. If they need to ask why one travels, then perhaps they could not understand the answer. It feels the same as someone asking me; Why do you know what you know? Why did you ever want to know it at all? Couldn't you unknow it so that you can move about your life with simplicity? Why do you have to complicate things?
I know what I want, and I am doing it. To me, that is simplicity. To me, that is natural. So many people don't do, even when they know their hopes and dreams. Step 1 is knowing, step 2 is doing, step 3 is learning.
I think it has become clear that I travel, for one, because of people. I want to understand more than anyone I have ever known. I crave to sit down and listen for hours about the woes of history, the triumphs over oppression, the ever-present opinions of a person living and breathing their own culture and beliefs while surrounded by differences. I crave to end stereotypes about American travelers, although I find myself behaving ignorantly at times - half-hazardly paying attention to the effects my behavior has on the people around me. Maybe I will never see them again, but then, maybe they will shake their heads or hiss and go on telling all of their colleagues about the obnoxious American - the inconsiderate pricks that we are. That's not to say there are not other cultures that have poor travelers. Nor does it mean that all Americans are poor travelers. It does mean, that there are splendid travelers and there are poor travelers.
The splendid traveler is who I aspire to, and how I speak about travel. It's the empathetic person who is eager to meet locals and hear differing opinions without judgment. To know the culture - to know the language or be familiar with it. Its as simple as being able to tell the difference between Dutch, and Deutsch, Swiss and Swedish, Spanish and Italian, Malay and Indo, Korean and Japanese, Farsi and Arabic - an Australian accent versus an English accent versus a New Zealand Accent. To know that an American accent is an accent - not a baseline from which all accents have stemmed. The splendid traveler knows that she is out of place and tries not to disrupt the environment she is in, rather, join it - or at least show desire to, and respect for the members. The plain fact that I can say hello in every country I go to changes the response of the people I speak with - even when I can't continue the conversation in their language. I tried. And we then respect one another. I, already entering with respect for the culture, and I, often needing to prove my respect and earn theirs as an American traveler - a byproduct of respect and trying is to feel safe, I'll be it comfortable, with foreign concepts and people. Americans do have a reputation as travelers - a terrible reputation - and I entirely understand it as I find myself, at times, being tested by eager young travelers around me.
The splendid traveler does not complain. She smiles. She knows when not to make eye contact. She does not give distasteful opinions about the culture she is in, and certainly not to a local. She knows the difference between disliking a tradition, and disrespecting one. She understands social cues. She understands that traveling alone is better because she is solely responsible for her own interactions. A splendid traveler has never been anywhere without creating a friend, and she understands that a friend does not necessarily mean a companion. She loves even when she is not loved. She knows when to ask questions, and she does. She knows when to be silent, and she does. She is choosey about when to be a child, and when to be an adult. Choosey about when to be spontaneous and when to be planned. This girl, has done her research - she isn't going in blind and so she knows what questions not to ask, and what places not to go. She is safe by herself because she is smart about all of these things. She has skills, but she learns others' and observes silently. Her opinion and experience is only important to her while she is traveling - and so she seeks the opinion and experience of others. Everyone likes to talk about themselves - the splendid traveler knows, however, that although everyone likes to talk about themselves, not everyone likes to listen about others. Silence is wise.
When she leaves her travels, maybe she has seen sights, and maybe she has spent money to climb on top of a tower for a view - being a tourist does not make anyone a poor traveler. Being only a tourist does. When she leaves her travels, although she may have toured (as she should to know the culture) - she also experienced the culture, the people, the language, the food, the tradition, the nature. And therefore when she leaves, she is able to love completely her counterparts and when she loves them completely she can be understanding beyond measure. International respect is extraordinarily powerful in human interactions and relationships.
Never seeing someone again, is not what is important. Leaving a handprint on their heart, and theirs on yours, is what is. A gentle handprint from a warm embrace is just as memorable, as a red handprint from a forceful slap. Sometimes when we are quick to hug - to get the hug out of the way - we squeeze too hard and our hug becomes painful. We must hold on, gently as a mother would, and we must breathe life into the hug. The shock of a warm unexpected hug, or a slap, are the same. Both can bring you to tears with their power, both are beyond measure in your heart. You will remember this, and although the slap or the hug may not have existed for anyone other than you and the other, it is now your truth and theirs. You share it.
For one, was because of people. For two, is because of me. All of what I said, about being a splendid traveler, and leaving your mark on a person's soul - all of those things make a person observant, stronger, better for herself and for others. And her soul becomes marked as well. It enlightens. It's true that travel enlightens. Never again will you be forced to be so aware, so keen to your surroundings, who you are, how you behave, and what you believe. You cannot lie to yourself about anything, because you are your only companion. I notice that so many of us lie to ourselves rather than looking at who we are, rather than accepting our truths so that we can be the best. We can be the best but only with all of our flaws. No inward lies that blind our growth - only beauty in flaws and gifts. Many of us don't realize we lie about ourselves - to ourselves. Sometimes I see the truth of others even when they don't and when they speak I hear their lies - but they believe the lies. They havent yet realized their truth. Truth is necessary for enlightenment, and yet we often choose to feel other things instead, not realizing that it is only a distraction from your truth. Shame is yours only. Guilt is yours only. Embarrassment is yours only. You feel them because you choose to, and when you are completely honest with yourself, and love you anyway, all of those other negative things go away and you become wise.
I suppose in that respect that when I travel for me I travel for truth. Truth is the key to all of the mysteries of life, ourselves, humanity, God - enlightenment is the door in which the key can be found, and gratitude is the manner in which we pass the threshold. I'm not wise enough to tell you what is over the threshold, however, I imagine it is a place where there is no need for questions and no need for answers.
It's hard to explain to someone who maybe hasn't traveled, or someone who maybe doesn't think of people like I do - someone who doesn't think beyond their sight, or beyond their ears. Perhaps it would be a challenge if you never left your home state, or maybe you focused on the designated "priorities" of life that culture has laid out for you. Maybe you never were told that you could look outside of your box - that it is completely possible to live in a whole new world and to create your own entirely unique traditions and lifestyle.
I was told that the best response for someone who asks why I travel is silence. If they need to ask why one travels, then perhaps they could not understand the answer. It feels the same as someone asking me; Why do you know what you know? Why did you ever want to know it at all? Couldn't you unknow it so that you can move about your life with simplicity? Why do you have to complicate things?
I know what I want, and I am doing it. To me, that is simplicity. To me, that is natural. So many people don't do, even when they know their hopes and dreams. Step 1 is knowing, step 2 is doing, step 3 is learning.
I think it has become clear that I travel, for one, because of people. I want to understand more than anyone I have ever known. I crave to sit down and listen for hours about the woes of history, the triumphs over oppression, the ever-present opinions of a person living and breathing their own culture and beliefs while surrounded by differences. I crave to end stereotypes about American travelers, although I find myself behaving ignorantly at times - half-hazardly paying attention to the effects my behavior has on the people around me. Maybe I will never see them again, but then, maybe they will shake their heads or hiss and go on telling all of their colleagues about the obnoxious American - the inconsiderate pricks that we are. That's not to say there are not other cultures that have poor travelers. Nor does it mean that all Americans are poor travelers. It does mean, that there are splendid travelers and there are poor travelers.
The splendid traveler is who I aspire to, and how I speak about travel. It's the empathetic person who is eager to meet locals and hear differing opinions without judgment. To know the culture - to know the language or be familiar with it. Its as simple as being able to tell the difference between Dutch, and Deutsch, Swiss and Swedish, Spanish and Italian, Malay and Indo, Korean and Japanese, Farsi and Arabic - an Australian accent versus an English accent versus a New Zealand Accent. To know that an American accent is an accent - not a baseline from which all accents have stemmed. The splendid traveler knows that she is out of place and tries not to disrupt the environment she is in, rather, join it - or at least show desire to, and respect for the members. The plain fact that I can say hello in every country I go to changes the response of the people I speak with - even when I can't continue the conversation in their language. I tried. And we then respect one another. I, already entering with respect for the culture, and I, often needing to prove my respect and earn theirs as an American traveler - a byproduct of respect and trying is to feel safe, I'll be it comfortable, with foreign concepts and people. Americans do have a reputation as travelers - a terrible reputation - and I entirely understand it as I find myself, at times, being tested by eager young travelers around me.
The splendid traveler does not complain. She smiles. She knows when not to make eye contact. She does not give distasteful opinions about the culture she is in, and certainly not to a local. She knows the difference between disliking a tradition, and disrespecting one. She understands social cues. She understands that traveling alone is better because she is solely responsible for her own interactions. A splendid traveler has never been anywhere without creating a friend, and she understands that a friend does not necessarily mean a companion. She loves even when she is not loved. She knows when to ask questions, and she does. She knows when to be silent, and she does. She is choosey about when to be a child, and when to be an adult. Choosey about when to be spontaneous and when to be planned. This girl, has done her research - she isn't going in blind and so she knows what questions not to ask, and what places not to go. She is safe by herself because she is smart about all of these things. She has skills, but she learns others' and observes silently. Her opinion and experience is only important to her while she is traveling - and so she seeks the opinion and experience of others. Everyone likes to talk about themselves - the splendid traveler knows, however, that although everyone likes to talk about themselves, not everyone likes to listen about others. Silence is wise.
When she leaves her travels, maybe she has seen sights, and maybe she has spent money to climb on top of a tower for a view - being a tourist does not make anyone a poor traveler. Being only a tourist does. When she leaves her travels, although she may have toured (as she should to know the culture) - she also experienced the culture, the people, the language, the food, the tradition, the nature. And therefore when she leaves, she is able to love completely her counterparts and when she loves them completely she can be understanding beyond measure. International respect is extraordinarily powerful in human interactions and relationships.
Never seeing someone again, is not what is important. Leaving a handprint on their heart, and theirs on yours, is what is. A gentle handprint from a warm embrace is just as memorable, as a red handprint from a forceful slap. Sometimes when we are quick to hug - to get the hug out of the way - we squeeze too hard and our hug becomes painful. We must hold on, gently as a mother would, and we must breathe life into the hug. The shock of a warm unexpected hug, or a slap, are the same. Both can bring you to tears with their power, both are beyond measure in your heart. You will remember this, and although the slap or the hug may not have existed for anyone other than you and the other, it is now your truth and theirs. You share it.
For one, was because of people. For two, is because of me. All of what I said, about being a splendid traveler, and leaving your mark on a person's soul - all of those things make a person observant, stronger, better for herself and for others. And her soul becomes marked as well. It enlightens. It's true that travel enlightens. Never again will you be forced to be so aware, so keen to your surroundings, who you are, how you behave, and what you believe. You cannot lie to yourself about anything, because you are your only companion. I notice that so many of us lie to ourselves rather than looking at who we are, rather than accepting our truths so that we can be the best. We can be the best but only with all of our flaws. No inward lies that blind our growth - only beauty in flaws and gifts. Many of us don't realize we lie about ourselves - to ourselves. Sometimes I see the truth of others even when they don't and when they speak I hear their lies - but they believe the lies. They havent yet realized their truth. Truth is necessary for enlightenment, and yet we often choose to feel other things instead, not realizing that it is only a distraction from your truth. Shame is yours only. Guilt is yours only. Embarrassment is yours only. You feel them because you choose to, and when you are completely honest with yourself, and love you anyway, all of those other negative things go away and you become wise.
I suppose in that respect that when I travel for me I travel for truth. Truth is the key to all of the mysteries of life, ourselves, humanity, God - enlightenment is the door in which the key can be found, and gratitude is the manner in which we pass the threshold. I'm not wise enough to tell you what is over the threshold, however, I imagine it is a place where there is no need for questions and no need for answers.
And so I travel for truth. At least for now.
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