My family has traveled. I grew up military, which means every few months or years we packed our belongings in boxes and moved states, sometimes continents away. I have spent many long hours in the car with countless pee stops at gas stations, and somehow, my mom always found a way to make trips fun and educational. I have been drug to more national parks and museums than I can count. It was torture for me as a child, but I've grown to appreciate it throughout the years. It is now something that I do not begrudgingly attend, but actually look forward to. Each trip has a lesson to offer, but my overall travels have taught me a few key things for life.

1. Get out

The number one thing that traveling has taught me is to do just that: travel. No matter how much of the world you see, there is always more to experience. It is impossible to brag that you have "seen it all." The more I travel, the more humility I gain. Who am I to think that I am so big in this world, when I am such a small piece?

2. Take the road less traveled

Going with the flow is cool and all, but it's hard to be yourself when the current is telling you where to go and what to do. Don't be afraid to follow your own path, one that few others have chosen, or to forge your own. No matter where you go in life, your path is your own to choose.

3. It's okay to be lost

Not having a sense of direction is not the end of the world. Sometimes we get lost, and sometimes we make the wrong decision. Pause. Breathe. Take a moment to get your bearings and try to figure out your sense of direction. Then, take a step and see where this new path takes you.

4. Take in every moment

Put your phone down and experience the totality of life around you. A photo can only depict how a place looked from the outside, it can't capture the sensations and feelings that a moment can hold. If we constantly look at life through the camera lens of our phone, what will we have to look back at remember other than our technology? I want to remember how in-awe I felt, not how in-awe I looked for my Instagram post.