GRATITUDE | TRAVEL

Full-Time Travel Has Made Me More Grateful

It’s often about the little things in life.

I’ve just realized that we are more than a week into November and I haven’t written a response to Globetrotter's November prompt “Being Grateful To Be Able To Travel”. As an editor, I was privy to what this prompt was going to be, and even then I considered that I should, of course, write an article for it. But even in that moment, I didn’t know how I would do it.

Putting my gratitude for travel into words somehow seems like such a big challenge. How does one explain profound gratitude? I feel like gratitude embodies who I am these days. Like I am living gratitude. It’s hard to explain, but let me try.

My partner and I have been nomadic for 5 years now. I sometimes think about that and realize what an accomplishment it is. This life is not an easy road, there are constant hurdles to overcome. Each new place brings challenges and problems that need to be figured out. Things like learning the transit system, finding the best supermarket, and figuring out the most enjoyable things to see and do. And of course, there are just the normal annoying things that travel brings with it that get tiresome at times.

But it is in these challenges, that I somehow find my purpose in this life. I have no routine, there is nothing that brings me boredom. I don't sit at home and yearn for anything better like I did in my conventional life because I realize that this is as good as it gets.

I am literally living my dream life.

Of course, it isn’t perfect. We struggle with earning a steady income and I have days where I get annoyed and restless and wonder what this life is all about. I sometimes think about my end game and where I will find myself in 10, 15, or 20 years. But those thoughts are fleeting, I don’t have time to ponder too much about the future, because I am very focused on the present moment.

This life has slowed me down and has forced me to appreciate each moment. It is important to take in everything we are seeing and to experience each place to the best of our ability. And while this doesn’t mean that we have to see everything and do everything, it does mean that we have to pay attention.

We spot the small things that many might not notice, like little pieces of art on electrical boxes, or statues and carvings on the streets. We see the cats that are climbing on the buildings, or the birds that are flitting in the trees. We are on constant alert and are always observing our surroundings.

I am grateful that I don’t have routine and boredom.

I am grateful that every day has the potential to be different and exciting.

I am grateful that I get to constantly have new experiences.

I am grateful that I have the time to appreciate the little things.

While housesitting in Nicaragua back in 2018, we experienced what it was like to live in a civil war. The war broke out while we were there and we stayed in the country for about 6 weeks while we tried to figure out if we should stay or go.

We never did see violence in our immediate area, but after noticing that supplies were running low in the market and that the grocery store shelves were starting to empty, we realized that we were not doing anyone any favors by being there and taking up limited resources. We also realized that we really didn’t want to witness any violence.

It wasn’t until we retreated back to Costa Rica, that we had time to process the stress and anxiety we had been under. It was in those moments that I realized how grateful I was to have been able to leave. Lucky us, we simply crossed a border and it was all over. We didn’t have to stay and endure like most of the Nicaraguans did.

I also truly realized how grateful I was to have grown up in Canada. A land of freedom, peace and democracy.

While staying near a small village in Uganda in 2021 we came to realize that many in the village were literally starving. Covid had killed their tourist economy and drought had killed their crops. They were in a desperate situation. Thankfully, we were able to fundraise online and bring them food for almost 3 months in their time of crisis.

It amazed me that the local government knew that this was happening, but did nothing to help the situation. Of course, it was happening in many communities in the region, not just this one small village. I can’t imagine how a government could solve a problem as big as that.

Though we were asked to also help other communities with our fundraising efforts, we remained focused on just the one. It was enough, and the commitments we made there nearly broke us physically, emotionally, and mentally, as it was.

But throughout it all, I was grateful. Grateful that I had the ability to do something and grateful that I had the financial support from friends and family around the world to make it happen.

Many times throughout our travels we have been helped by strangers.

The world is full of wonderful people and we have certainly found our fair share of them.

In Sudan, we came across a group of men at a coffee stand that struck up a conversation with us. Over our time there they helped us with many things including finding us an apartment to rent and renewing our tourist visas, plus they even took us out to lunch and on a boat one day!

Meeting the locals and knowing that you have assistance if and when you need it, can really make a place feel more comfortable.

We were so grateful for their friendship and hospitality during our stay there and I am very grateful for all of the kind people that we have met on our travels that have helped us in so many ways.

As full-time traveling artists, we paint murals in exchange for accommodation in some of the places that we visit. All of our hosts have been very kind and appreciative of our art and we are grateful for that.

We are grateful that they understand the value of what we are providing them with, and that they understand that we could be anywhere else in the world, but we chose to be there. We are grateful when they appreciate us.

The same can be said for our hosts where we volunteer to do gardening and farm work. In exchange for our work, we get food and accommodation and we usually feel appreciated. It feels good to be able to provide a service to others that doesn’t come with a huge financial burden to them.

We are grateful that we live a life that allows us to do this.

We have now traveled across many different landscapes on our planet. From deserts to the jungles, and mountains to the coastlines, we have seen a lot. Mother Nature is a very powerful creator, and I will never tire of the diversity that she has created. Every place we visit is unique and different in some way, and I am always in awe and inspired by the landscape that surrounds us.

I have always been grateful for nature, but travel has truly brought this to another level. As full-time travelers, we are always aware of our impact on the planet, and we go out of our way to try and reduce our footprint as much as possible. This means that we rarely travel by plane and try to have as little impact as we can on the environment.

I am very grateful for our natural world and the diversity of plants and animals that we get to witness.

Finally, a post about gratitude for traveling would not be complete without recognizing my parents contribution. I feel like I was literally born a traveler as I went on my first overseas adventure at the age of just 10 months. Many of my treasured childhood memories are of times I traveled with my parents. I will ALWAYS be very grateful to them for the life they provided me with and for showing me the world at such a young age.

They instilled in me a love for this planet that I know would not have been possible if it wasn’t for the traveling that we did. From camping trips and road trips to flying to world-class destinations, we surely had many amazing adventures together and I would not be the person I am today without it all.

They are also supporters of my current chosen lifestyle. I think they realize that they are the ones responsible for it, so I don’t think they can complain too much. Haha. Plus, they both love to travel as well, so I think they get it.

I am deeply grateful to them for who they are and how they raised me, but I am mostly grateful that they passed their love of travel on to me.

I could probably write about gratitude for hours because, as I said at the beginning, it is a part of us now. I guess, overall, we are the most grateful for this life we have chosen, and we are grateful that we come from a country where we are able to make it happen.

We never take our privilege for granted, and the more we travel, the more grateful we are for both the lives we have been given plus the one we have made for ourselves.

Full-time travel has given me the space and time to really step back and appreciate life in all aspects. We aren’t distracted by small dramas and the things that used to take up space in our minds. It’s as if we are now spectators of our lives, and for once we can truly see it and appreciate it.

Travel also constantly reminds me how grateful I am for my childhood and my life growing up in Canada. While it isn’t a perfect country, it is certainly an amazing place to come from.

I don’t really know how it is possible to express the gratitude that I feel for all of it. But I live a life of gratitude, and I am grateful for every moment.

I suppose that is enough.

If you like my writing and want to read more, subscribe to Medium through my referral link (I will earn a small commission) to get full access! Plus sign up here to get my articles by email!

Join our nomadic journey by hitting the links below!

Website | Instagram | Facebook | Twitter | Patreon| YouTube | Medium