I grew up in a fairly small town. There are only about 2,000 total residents, with a graduating high school class of 200 students. Most people in my town are well into their 40's. Oftentimes, they had grown up in the town or in one nearby. Everyone, except for my grandmother.
She has seen so much of the United States. She used to work as an auditor for Payless Shoes, and they sent her to their stores all around the country. She has a toothpick holder from almost every state. I love to just sit and listen to her stories of San Fransisco, L.A., Houston, Miami, and so many others.
My grandmother ignited the wanderlust within me. She sparked the desire to move, to travel, to see some of what she has seen.
I don't think I could live with myself if I don't say "I've seen all I can" when I get old. I've only been to a handful of places so far. Chicago, Atlanta, New York, Nashville, Richmond, Birmingham, but it's not enough.
Wanderlust, for me, isn't just the desire to explore - it's the desire to find where I belong.
Every place I've been to has been amazing, don't get me wrong on that. But, it's never felt like home. Each place brings a different type of smile and fun, but not the kind I'm searching for. Each place, in their own way, has felt refreshing and made me happy, but I want to look further.
I don't just want to see as many states as I can, like my grandmother did - I want to see the world.
I want to travel to places that speak different languages and have a culture vastly different from my own. I want to see things I've only dreamed of seeing, things I've seen online, yet wonder if it's even real because of just how amazing it seems. I want to see a Buddhist temple, stand on the Great Wall of China, swim in Morrocco, try kimchi in South Korea, and go to so many countless museums to see works of art I've only dreamt of seeing.
When you grow up in a small town, you come to find that most people don't think they can even leave.
If I ever mentioned traveling abroad, I was always met with "good luck" and a look of sympathy. Having a dream to live anywhere other than our small town was an impossible goal for myself, like it was a bar set too high.
No one even thought I would make it to the University of Kentucky yet here I am, planning my exchange trip to Japan next year.
