I couldn’t write for a while, and so I do apologize to those who have faithfully read my blog. Things are tough – we don’t need to go there – but I wanted to write a little about what this blog means to me.
Travel is something that was made important to me when I was just a child. Mom and Dad planned a vacation almost every year. They were not the kind of people that booked a hotel room and relaxed, however.
Mom and Dad would choose a general location, create an itinerary, and then go visit as much as possible over the course of one or two weeks. Usually, we would never stay more than one night in any one place. We would get up early, drive for a few hours, then experience whatever was near the place where we landed.
There were a few exceptions. We went to Wisconsin Dells and spent time seeing all that was there. We did the same in Branson, Missouri. However, I also remember the trip to New York where we saw every museum (at least I believed so) between Illinois and Niagara Falls, and even up into Toronto, by doing the early morning drive, then spending the day at some historic and wonderful place. I remember the Henry Ford Museum specifically, and among its treasures were rows and rows of beautiful old cars.
I also remember going to Florida, which meant starting in St Augustine, then going down to Daytona Beach, and then over to Disney World for a day. We then went to Weeki Wachee, and up the coast. At some point, either on the way down or the way up, we spent the day in Tennessee where we went through this amazing cavern.
I come by the desire for travel quite naturally, although I do love going to a resort and spending a week relaxing. If I had my dreams come true, I would spend the rest of my life traveling and experiencing the world.
Fortunately, I have had the privilege to do some traveling in my life. Not everyone gets that chance, but I have been able to see some amazing places. I can only hope that I will continue in the future to be able to go and see wonderful parts of the world.
For now, I am writing about my experiences, and I am so appreciative of anyone who is reading what I have to say about travel.
Life has been quite the journey. I traveled a road that was different than most. It led to some interesting places, and to some difficult places. However, I have always stayed on the move, and this blog is a part of that journey forward. As much as I sometimes want to live in the past, a past where Mom and Dad still live and we go on one of those wonderful vacations that are almost unheard of for most American families these days, I know that I must keep moving forward into all of the different lives that I lead.
Writing about the world helps me to find it with fresh eyes. I don't know that I realized how much my love of travel had come from my parents until I started writing about it. For years I believed that we had never really seen enough - but the truth was that my parents showed the family what the world around them could hold. I am forever grateful for what they gave to us.
Some of the things that others may not know about my parents was that they had a great love of knowledge. When we traveled, they were seeking new things to learn. This wasn't because they wanted their children to have educational experiences as much as those were the experiences that they loved most. They loved history, art, and science. They could easily see the great masters of painting as look at the great art that is nature. The lessons that were learned on those vacations were lessons that were for each of us about the important of the past and the way in which it reflected on the present.
My parents were perpetual students of the world, and as such, wanted to learn as many of its secrets as possible.
Sadly, one of their great regrets is that they did not get to visit the Smithsonian before they passed, as my mother had become too ill for them to make their next planned journey.
I never wanted to have that kind of regret, although whether I make it to the Louvre in France or not is still up for debate. I want to know as much of the world as possible, and in being a student every day, I can learn as much of it as I can through the resources that I have available.
This blog is the hope of the life that will come next, and I can’t wait to show you what I have been fortunate enough to learn.
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