I have been bored all my life. I grew up in a town that had little to do but go to school and play sports. Don't get me wrong, my parents chose a great place for their three children to grow up in. It was safe, was somewhat cultured, had a great education system, and it was the perfect place to grow up. The only thing is that some people never escape. They never break out. I couldn't imagine that I would be happy living there for the rest of my life.

I chose to go to school over 600 miles away from "home." For a lot of people, that's too far. Too far from the familiar, too far from their parents, too far from their high school friends, too far away from the safety net. But I don't have a safety net and I never intend to have one. I plan to trust myself to land where I may and to grow where I transplant myself.

They say you should grow where you are planted, but how do they know that those are the right conditions? A plant that thrives in sunlight will certainly not grow to its full potential if it is planted in the shade. Some plants can thrive exactly where they are planted, and they stay where they are. But I was not planted where I would grow to my full potential. I was planted in a spot that sheltered me from harm until I was ready to continue to grow. I need to find the conditions that foster my love for learning, free spirit, and lively nature.

The first time I really remember leaving the United States for another destination was the summer before my junior year of high school. My family went to Ireland for ten days, and it completely changed my life. I met people who shared my ancestry in another country, I saw buildings three times older than the United States, I was introduced to a different lifestyle, I got to appreciate the culture of somewhere new, I got to open my eyes.

The best part about this earth is that there are so many different types of people, beauty, places, and identities. I just don't understand how people can say that they never want to leave the United States. Yeah, it's beautiful and there certainly is a lot to see and to experience, but staying in one country for your entire life is like going to a buffet of amazing food and only eating vanilla ice cream. There's so much more to experience than vanilla ice cream, even though it's delicious. The point of a buffet is to get as much food as you want from as many stations as you want so you can have the full experience.

By not traveling and seeing all there is to see (if you are able), you are depriving yourself of experiences that can change your life, people that will make you happy, and food that will make your mouth water. There is so much more out there than the fifty states that millions of people currently reside in. The US isn't your home, the earth is your home and you share it with over seven billion people and it would be a shame if you didn't get to know some of your neighbors. The opportunities are endless, as long as you're brave enough to make that first step out your front door.