How Travel Did Not Change My Life
How travel did not change my life the way I thought it would? Here’s my take on it.
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“Besh, mag-travel ka na din para hindi naman masyadong boring buhay mo.” (Besh, travel, so your life wouldn’t be as boring as ever”)
I overheard this as I sat alone in a fast food chain somewhere in Quezon City. It came from a couple of twenty-something-year-old group of individuals. That statement played back in rewind as it hit me. But ironic as it is, I felt guilty since I also thought of saying that a few years back. It was the same mindset that I had when I first started.
With all the traveling I have done for the past few years, did it change my life?
Did it make me become a version 2.0 of myself?
If you are looking for the list in here of how it did, the answer is NO.
Traveling did not change me.
Going on random trips, communing with nature, experiencing new cultures, and waking up in a strange town did not change how I see myself, my lifestyle, the way I see life, and not even my relationship status (pun intended).
However, it allowed me to open my eyes to the realities we encounter every day. It changed my life, not in the way I initially thought of.
It helped me realize my way to self discovery. It guided me in gauging where my limits lie and how far I can go when all else seems to fail.
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Traveling did not change the way I see myself
In contrast to the popular opinions like “It will turn you into a completely different person”, “Your life will not be boring anymore”, and even peppered with the constant lie of “you will learn to become humble”.
Traveling for the record did not change the way I see myself. I just learned to embrace my flaws.
Do not fall into notions such as becoming confident or not being shy anymore. We will still be our old selves who are just trying new things and checking out what clothes fit us and what wouldn’t.
With all the self-confessed travel enthusiasts out there, we are just trying to brand ourselves just for the sake of it – a hiker, mountaineer, trekker, climber, traveler, photographer, blogger, influencer, and digital creator. Truth be told, it just widens the gap, a division that shouldn’t be there in the first place.
I never felt awesome or cool because I’ve been there. It never did, because I never thought for a second that I am doing this for the gram.
I felt awesome cause I am doing something my past and future self will be proud of.
Traveling taught me that the more I know about life and myself, the more I know nothing, which makes every day even more exciting.
Take chances and experience things for yourself not for the approval of others and every one around you.
Travelling did not change the way I lived
Contrary to the popular adages of how it is life-changing and how it will make you a better person. I am telling you, you are falling into a vicious trap. It is just like a drug that you keep hanging on to until you’re all dry.
With the proliferation of social media posts and everything in between, it is now becoming a competition than a journey to self-discovery.
We are now part of the crowd engaged in bucket lists, do-this, and do-that itineraries, always on the hunt for the next destinations and seat sales – since our friends have been there and we feel all left out.
We are now urged, no other than ourselves, to finish a list of mountains or beaches to visit before we die, we are completing a list of places to visit, notwithstanding, the PH82 project, because it feeds our own egos.
We are thinking we will be as awesome as those people who had been everywhere if we become like them.
We are just becoming a pressured generation with so many requirements to fulfill.
I kid you not, but I did not become rich or famous with all the traveling I did. Moreover, nor did I travel the world and become a jet setter.
My salary still depends on how hard I work and not on how many vacation leaves I have consumed.
Even if we admit it or not, the number of likes on our social media posts makes us feel that we are cool. In fact, it makes us feel that we are appreciated, and that we are as envy-inducing as the influencers on Instagram.
However, it taught me to prioritize and set aside a certain amount of budget and schedule in doing the things that make me alive the most.
Traveling taught me that you don’t really have to be rich to travel, since I still get broke after every trip. It did not changed the way I lived my life.
It made me realize that life is not a race on how many places you’ve been to. But it is about the things you reflected upon during that trip and how you carefully thought about those major decisions once you got back.
Travelling did not change the way I see life
Traveling did not change the way I see life, it is still unfair.
Life will not always favor you every time, you will either be on the lower or the upper hand.
Sometimes you get what you want, sometimes you don’t.
Traveling taught me to have a positive outlook in life, that for every problem encountered along the way, I consider it as a challenge and that I should be resourceful and practical in dealing with it.
It just taught me to not become a show-off and an asshole. Not your typical king of the hill guy.
Travelling did not change my relationship status
Yes, it did not. (HAHA)
“Walang Forever!” (There’s no forever!”) as some may shout along the mountain trail upon seeing two lovebirds. But do not travel if you are just looking and searching for the heck of it.
It is not how it goes, but who knows you might meet someone along the way, just waiting for that right moment. Of course, there are happy endings for individuals who have met in one of their adventures, there’s no denying that fact.
But a lot of these encounters these days are just flings and short “tent” relationships. You know who you are, people.
Do not expect to find love and a change in your relationship status. But do expect good Samaritans and kindred spirits in the form of a local stranger, an acquaintance, a new friend, and even a mean person – treasure the lot of them.
Life Is a Paradox
Traveling did not change me, nor did it make me into a new kind of person. It just taught me to deal with the things that I cannot control.
It made a massive impact on my life not by changing who I really am, but by how I deal with all the negative circumstances I encountered.
I never relied on traveling to change me into a new person nor expected it to turn my whole life around. The more I accept myself as just I am, then that is the time that I can change.
But one of the many things it taught me, is to accept things as they are. It made me realize the extent of my fears, potential, and what I value the most.
Life is but a series of contradictions, but it will and always be you who can change yourself for the better and not by something or someone else.
So travel if you must, but never rely on it as a catalyst for becoming a whole new you. There’s no reset button in this world, but there’s an improvement tab that you can use.
This is a journey to self-discovery, and those who are brave enough to try new things and up for the challenges are the one who makes it to the finish line without regrets.
New Perspectives
Travel and change the world for the better, and make a difference through simple acts of kindness. Do not show the world how better of a person you are because you’re doing the things that you do.
Travel not because you just need to be validated and feel appreciated by everyone through the number of likes and hearts on your well-curated accounts.
Travel and believe that what makes man truly happy is not the material things and earthly possessions. It is not in the gear, your attire, or gadgets that you have.
Travel not because you are pressured by what society deems as awesome.
Travel not because they want you to, but because you want it to.
Travel and enjoy every minute of it because life is too short.
Travel to realize the things you easily take for granted.
Travel to see the world through your own eyes.
Travel because it makes you who you are.
