Travel

Celebrating the Gift Of Travel

Travel is a privilege and should be treated as such

In my childhood home, curiosity and the desire to learn were valued higher than anything else.

I was constantly encouraged to try new things and get outside my comfort zone.

The most impactful way my parents promoted curiosity was through their constant dedication to travel.

I didn’t realize until much later in life what an incredible gift that was.

For 11 months each year, my parents saved money, worked overtime, and avoided taking days off. Simply put, they worked their butts off.

Until July, that is.

In our home, the arrival of July meant one thing: road trip.

Each July my parents packed our family of five into our beat-up minivan and set off for a new part of the country, not to return until August had arrived.

Now when I say “beat-up minivan,” I mean it.

The van that took us on most of these road trips was only retired a few years ago. For the last few trips, the car featured a concerning amount of duct tape and zip ties.

When that van was retired, the odometer read 386,000 miles.

Read that number again.

386,000 miles.

Why do I share that? To demonstrate the lengths to which my parents went to make these yearly trips happen.

My parents are not wealthy people. But, through careful planning and stubborn determination, they stretched a few thousand dollars out over 30 days.

And they did this year after year.

My early exposure to travel and budget travel, in particular, helped shape me into the person I am today.

Seeing how hard my parents worked to give us the opportunity to learn about the world taught me that travel is a privilege.

To me, travel represents the culmination of dedication, curiosity, and respect.

I hope, through my writing, to share with others how travel can be accessible despite budgetary restraints.

I never want there to be a day when I forget how incredibly lucky I am to have been raised by parents who value travel and learning above all else.

Through my parent’s hard work and determination, I was able to experience more of this Earth than some people do in a lifetime.

Words cannot express how grateful I am for that gift.

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