It has been so long since I sat down to type out a post for this blog. Over these past 5 years, my mother died, and my family pretty much disowned me. I gained a house, converted to Judaism, had my adult bat Mitzvah, joined a local synagogue, became guardian to my cousin, was diagnosed with Autism Spectrum Disorder, and had a major surgery. I gained several wonderful friends whom I love dearly. I have finally found a place where I feel that I have control of my life. When my mother died, I lost my travel partner and a part of my soul. I knew that in order to find that place where my heart could not only heal and even thrive, I had to find my way back to traveling.
My return to travel was very methodical and almost rote. I decided that I needed to learn how to do things by myself, since my mother and I did everything together for the better part of two decades. First, it was a meal alone. Next, shopping alone. And finally, solo day trips around the North Carolina and Virginia regions. It took me about 2 years to finally find the courage to venture out alone for my first large trip after Ma passed away. Danville, Roanoke, Cary, Chapel Hill, Winston-Salem, and Burlington were all on my completed list. But I had never been to the Outer Banks of North Carolina. That trip was revolutionary. I spent 5 days total on that trip... alone. That was probably the longest I had ever been alone in my life. Yet I wasn't lonely at all. I went where I wanted, ate what I wanted, and slept as long as my body felt it was necessary. I shopped and didn't feel awkward asking for a table for one. My heart filled, and it allowed me enough strength to finish out the year.
But the traveling wasn't the most wonderful experience: keeping my new travel journal was. Anyone who knows me knows that I am a planner. From meals to holiday gifts to floor plans to my wardrobe, I get twice as much joy as each event offers. Why just have 5 days of a trip when you can enjoy it before, during, and after. For the novice planner, this probably sounds daunting and a little bit of an overkill, but for me, it just heightens the experience. The important fact to know about journaling is that it is a evolving practice. The format changes as does the experiences themselves. I take what I like and leave those things that don't suit my purposes well. There are so many satisfying reasons for keeping a travel journal. It just seemed natural to me to do so. (I currently have 6 different types of journals, each of them different from the next.) Honestly, I wish that I had done so sooner! Now, traveling alone seems as natural to me as breathing and just as important.
You can look up the positive reasons for keeping a travel journal on Pinterest the same way that I did. You can easily have Google pull up pictures of all the interesting journal spreads you can make (like I do!). However, I encourage you to take what works and leave what doesn't. The most important piece of advice is to simply start. Figure out your style of journaling and do just that. Over the next month or so, I plan to write several posts to help you on your travel journal journey. From my favorite journal and all of my travel journaling supplies to spread ideas, I hope to offer you a picture of a sustainable travel journal practice to record everywhere you have been and where you wish to go. Happy and safe travels to all!
