Force of Nature
“I don’t want to feel held back by my husband’s schedule.”
“I never find anyone who wants to take some time off to go hike or backpack somewhere else.”
“I’m tired of giving up doing what I want to accommodate everyone else’s interests”
“I’m going through a personal loss and need some time off to think clearly, but don’t know where to start.”
As Austin Rose opened the floor for anyone to share why we were (or were interested in) traveling solo, many answers flared up. Last year's Richmond REI “Women’s Solo Travel” event attracted an ample and diverse group of females. With multiple solo traveling experiences under my belt, I thought of my attendance to this Force of Nature event as a sort of “field trip” in which I seemingly inconspicuously exposed myself to the same women I wanted to target with this blog. After the event was over, I pondered over the notes I’d taken and realized I have a lot of ground to cover through this initiative.
Women, we are: lovers, nurturers, care-takers, givers of life. It’s a given, even somewhat expected, for us to sacrifice or at least put aside our passions as we raise families out of nothing. But how do we expect to give everyone else our all when we’ve never taken the time to explore what our all really is? Why do we expect to sacrifice when we haven’t dug deep in the trenches of self-love to know just how far we can bend without breaking? When do we stop to care for ourselves?
All the responses to Austin’s initial question might as well have been “I’m unhappy and I’m looking for a change”. During the discussion that followed, Austin shared with us one of her most valuable nuggets of wisdom: you are your own worst enemy when you travel alone. In a similar way, however, we (women) usually fall in the trap of becoming our own worst enemy on a daily basis, underestimating their own capabilities, defaulting to the fragile, dependent state that society has made us believe is natural to us. We (myself included!) need to start making the conscious decision to follow our hearts and begin living a life of purpose and fulfillment, acknowledging our insecurities but not letting them control our decisions. We, you and me, have the power to change the course of our lives for the better… and for some ladies I met at the REI event last summer, the change started by declaring that they no longer wished for it, but needed it. Have you done the same?