Every trip begins the same way: You arrive in a new city, full of excitement and wonder about the days to come.
Then...something happens.
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It could be getting lost on the way to the hostel, or being unable to find the right bus stop, or it could be mere exhaustion from traveling. Either way, I always reach a point in the first day of my trip where I want nothing more than to turn around and go home right that very instant.
I’m writing this from my hostel in Rome, and while I’m currently happy to have arrived in the eternal city, half an hour ago I was sweaty, frustrated, and on the verge of tears. The problem was classic: I was alone, my phone was dead, and I couldn’t make my way back to my hostel after dinner. I wandered in the vicinity of Termini station for maybe 20 minutes, unknowingly passing the right street four or five times, silently willing myself to not start crying in public. Of course, I eventually realized which street was correct and made it back to my room, and am now once again filled with excitement for tomorrow’s adventures.
I’ll own up to it: I am not a particularly flexible person. I do not consider myself to be very spontaneous, and I love making lists almost more than I love checking things off them. At best, I’ve been called meticulous. The same cycle of happiness, frustration/exhaustion/regret, and finally feeling OK again plays itself out every single time I travel, in no small part due to my own inability to simply go with the flow.
And yet over the last year I have been placed in more and more situations that require me to act with a degree of flexibility I didn’t know was possible. And as a consequence, I’ve felt myself becoming more and more open to spontaneity and new experiences, whether while traveling or just in my day-to-day life. From rapidly changing travel plans to new relationships, my year abroad has thrown the gambit of life experiences at me. And somehow I’ve not only survived, but thrived.
Don’t get me wrong-- being “flexible” will always be terrifying. I don’t necessarily chomp at the bit to do something out of my comfort zone, or feel overjoyed when my plans go awry. But I do feel more confident and capable of handling anything that life could throw at me, even though it may make me want to cry.
Within the next two months, I am moving back to the US, graduating from college, starting a new full-time job, moving into a new apartment, buying my first car, and a multitude of other new challenges and experiences.
Am I scared? Yes.
Am I worried and anxious? Yes.
Am I ready? Also yes.
Because if my travels abroad have taught me anything, it’s that I can handle so much more than I thought I could, and manage to have the time of my life while doing it.
