Traveling has always been a major passion of mine. I believe that the greatest way to learn about this world that we live in, is to see and experience it for ourselves. Therefore, traveling – in any sense of the word – is always a good idea because it opens our own little world up into the grand one that lies before us.

I have my own parents to blame for instilling in me a love for travel and adventure. Both my mother and father are well-traveled and continue to go wherever they can whenever possible. My father has lived in various places around the country and his job requires him to travel often – but he loves it. My mother grew up in the same small town that I did, but she moved across the country on her own by the time she had hit her early twenties. I, myself, moved from my birthplace in Minnesota to Ohio before I was even two years old. Ever since I could remember, I have loved to travel,whether it was to go visit family in another state or go on a vacation far away. My wanderlust has only grown as I have gotten older, and I have a feeling it will stick around for decades to come.

By far my greatest traveling experience thus far was the summer I got to spend in California. My mother had connections in the state from when she used to live there and, long story short, her connections landed me a position as a working student and camp counselor for a horse stable in Oakland, CA. At the age of 17, I left all the people I knew and comforts of home to go work and live in a completely strange environment for a summer. Many people my age would never think about doing something like that, but I was ready for the adventure the second I heard of such a possibility. It only took me about a week to adjust and begin making new friends and memories that would last me a lifetime. An experience like this opened my eyes to many new people and ways of life so different from small-town Ohio. I learned, grew, and developed more as a person overall. I loved every second of it and would do it again in a heartbeat.

I wanted to draw on my own experiences of traveling to encourage you to go out there and explore this incredible world that we live in. As a college student, I have plans to study abroad for a semester in England and I could not be more excited to experience a new culture and place. Beyond college, I hope to explore several other cities, countries, and continents throughout my life.

What many people fail to realize is that it doesn’t matter how old you are or how much money you have, you can still travel! If you are young or in high school, find a summer camp or job that’s in a new place and go experience it. If you are in college, take advantage of the wonderful opportunity to study abroad in a different country. If you are an adult with a career or family, don’t be afraid show yourself and your loved ones all that this world has to offer. Beyond this, there are cheaper alternatives to every aspect of traveling if you can’t budget for a five-star vacation, you just have to do your research.

One ongoing pattern that I notice particularly in people from my small hometown is their lack of desire or courage to travel or live in some place different. I think this is a quality of many small-towners across the country. So often we as creatures of habit settle into life in one place and get all too comfortable staying right where we are. Now, there is nothing wrong with having roots and being proud of where you are from – that’s admirable. But never leaving home or discovering the world for yourself is a sad reality for many people. How can we ever grow as individuals or know what it’s like truly live if we never venture beyond the parameters of our own backyard?

There is nothing quite as fulfilling and eye opening as traveling. If you want to learn, travel. If you want to grow, travel. If you want to experience life like you’ve never imagined, travel. Why? It is in discovering this world and uncovering all the beauty that lies beyond our own backyard, that we in turn discover ourselves and thus uncover all the beauty that lies deep within us.