We've all heard the saying “Life is short.” And, sometimes, it is.
But life is also unpredictable.
Even though we all probably have dreams and goals and plans for our lives, there are certain things we have no control over. Our lives could be going along on right on track, only to be shattered by something we could never have seen coming.
A tornado that rips through a neighborhood. A flood that devastates farms. An earthquake that reduces a city to rubble. And these are just the unpredictable things nature can bring about. There are also accidents, health problems, financial woes…
Life is too fleeting and changeable to take for granted.
I have a tattoo around my wrist that reads: “All we have to decide is what to do with the time that is given to us.” I try to recite this quote every once in a while, in order to remind myself to live in the here and now, and not in the future or the past. When it comes down to it, we can only live with what we're given, taking advantage of the opportunities that come our way.
This applies to travel, too.
I'm not a full-time traveler. I spend most days working to make a living just like you do. So when a chance arises for me to visit some far-off country or exotic locale, I jump on it.
Take, for example, my recent trip to New Zealand. I won a prize from the Blog4NZ campaign, and decided to plan an impromptu trip to NZ. I bought a plane ticket and was South Pacific-bound within a month of winning. Sure, I could have postponed it, saved up some more money and planned to go sometime later.
But, I thought, what if “sometime later” never came?
I know where I would like my life to be headed in the coming months and years. But there are no guarantees that things will go as planned. In fact, more likely than not, nothing will go as planned.
Last summer, when I was on an Alaskan cruise with my family, I made note of the prevalence of older couples on our cruise ship. Old men who could only walk with canes. Old women who didn’t even leave the ship when we pulled into port. It was almost comical, the number of electric wheelchairs positioned outside staterooms at night.
And, while I’m glad that older couples still travel, I couldn’t help feeling a bit sorry for some of them on this cruise. No doubt many had dreamed about and saved up for this trip for years. For many, it was probably meant to be a retirement gift to themselves. But were they even enjoying it?
How often do we hear others say, “Oh, I’ll travel when I retire,” “I’ll travel when the kids are grown,” “I’ll travel when the house is paid off”? I hear these excuses all the time. But you know what happens? Age. And stress. And, well, life. Life happens, and by the time you retire and your kids are grown and your house is paid off, you have bad knees and weak lungs and you simply can’t visit all those places you dreamed about in your youth.
How sad. I don’t want to end up like that, holding on to youthful travel dreams that will never be reality.
So I travel now, in whatever way and to whatever place I can. I scrimp and I save and I make it happen. I took the Blog4NZ opportunity placed before me and embraced it, despite the low balance in my savings account. I'm glad I did, and I was lucky enough to have a lot of my expenses covered on that trip.
But even on trips where everything has been paid for out of my own pocket, I grasp at every opportunity and unique adventure. I travel with reckless abandon — often to the detriment of my wallet.
Is this wise? Probably not if you’re a long-term traveler. But, for someone like me who tends to take shorter trips to distant places, I attack travel with a no-holds-barred attitude.
Bungy jumping? Helicopter rides? Expensive tours? If I think they are worth it, then I will not hesitate to shell out for experiences. I treat every trip I take as a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity. Sure, I'd like to think I'll be back to Ireland or Italy or Australia someday. But what if I never make it back? I don't want to have any regrets in my life, and this includes travel regrets.
I know not everyone shares this travel philosophy, though. Many travelers stick to a strict budget so they can travel for as long as possible. Others simply don’t wait to pay for anything beyond the necessities.
When I was studying abroad in New Zealand, I traveled extensively all over the country with two friends. We booked everything from whale watching to zorbing to a private flight over the Southern Alps, and racked up some impressive credit card bills. I think we spent more weekends outside of Wellington than in it. Another international student that year almost looked down her nose at our pricey adventures, declaring that she had come to New Zealand to study, not empty her savings account on travel.
My question to her was, why would you come literally halfway around the world to hoard your money and keep your nose pressed into a book every weekend? Would you go to China and not visit the Great Wall because it costs money? Would you go to Italy and skip visiting the Vatican because it requires an admission ticket?
There are so many worthwhile experiences to be had in the world — and yes, many of them require money. But it’s my travel philosophy that you shouldn’t deny yourself any of these experiences just because they come with a pricetag.
If you are privileged enough to be able to afford to travel, then you should attack it with curiosity and vigor and a sense of adventure. And to hell with the bank account.
So travel now. Make memories. And enjoy your life.
At the end of the day, I'd rather die with a million memories than a million dollars. Money won't comfort me on my deathbed, but knowing that I lived a full and fulfilling life might.
What's your take? Do you take full advantage of every travel opportunity as if it were your last, too?
Amanda Williams is the award-winning blogger behind A Dangerous Business Travel Blog. She has traveled to more than 60 countries on 6 continents from her home base in Ohio, specializing in experiential and thoughtful travel through the US, Europe, and rest of the world. Amanda only shares tips based on her personal experiences and places she's actually traveled!
Great post — so true! It’s unfortunate that many people put off their dreams because of “what ifs” or fear of stepping outside their comfort zone. I love your tattoo’s message. It puts the responsibility on individuals and their freedom to choose. You don’t have to wait til retirement to travel because that’s the norm — it’s your choice, so don’t wait!
Thank so much! I’m glad the post resonated with you. The quote of my tattoo is actually a quote from “Lord of the Rings,” and I chose it because, not only is it from my favorite movie/book, but it’s so completely applicable to everyday life. And travel often IS all about choices. If you want to travel, YOU are the only one who can make it happen!
You are so right. Now that I am at home visiting, I hear a lot of excuses–mostly how can I afford it and am I afraid not to have a career and things like that. A lot of people say they are jealous and I don’t know if they are just saying that so I think they agree with me or if they really wish they could do what I do. Either way it always reminds me that even in tough times of travel I’m doing exactly what I want to do. Everything else to me is just a minor detail, it will fall into place!
No matter what it is, I just wish that people would start listening to themselves to find happiness instead of listening to everyone else!
And I don’t even want to talk about my credit card bills when I got back from Australia!! haha.
We really are a society of sheep, though. Even when we SAY we don’t care what others think, we honestly do. Desperately so, sometimes. Which is sad. I think we’d be a much less stressed society overall if people just did what made them happy (well, within reason, I suppose… if killing puppies makes you happy, I wouldn’t really advocate for that). But I know what you mean!
Unfortunately, there will always be people who just don’t “get it.” What you do and what I do will always be something they just can’t fathom. But keep doin’ what you’re doin’ Annie, as long as it makes you happy!
YES YES YES! When I studied abroad in London, my roommate never went ANYWHERE, claiming everything was too expensive. I could not imagine going halfway across the world, to spend my entire time there staring at the walls of my flat. Sure, I came back to America with some debt, but the memories from my time there were completely worth it. I wouldn’t trade it for the world.
EXACTLY! That’s exactly how I felt about New Zealand (how I STILL feel about New Zealand!). Sure, I went into a bit of debt during my study abroad stint, but I don’t regret one cent of it. I could not fathom traveling all that way just to treat it as though I was back home in Ohio.
My hubby and I are of the mindset to travel now and not when we retire. That is not to say we won’t but we too have seen older couples who really struggle and can’t as much advantage of the locales they visit due to health issues or fragility. We don’t want to wait either and travel as much as possible. We don’t have kids which makes it easier to. I take advantage of every possible opportunity to go somewhere and will continue to do so until I can’t walk anymore!
Sounds like a great plan to me, Andi! I would love to still be able to travel after I retire. But, with people working until they’re older and older these days, you just never know if it will actually be possible. So I’m going to travel as much as possible before then!
I absolutely agree with your philosophy. Tomorrow may never come. All we have is today. I’m so glad I’ve been able have the adventures I’ve had so far; I wouldn’t exchange them for anything. When it’s my time to go, I want to have the sort of life that I can look back on and know that I’ve done all the things I really wanted to do. Great post, Amanda.
Thanks, Marsha. I, too, am so thankful for the life I’ve been able to lead so far. I know how lucky I am to have been able to travel as much as I have. But part of the reason I’ve had so many great adventures so far is because I’ve gone after them! As soon as I save up enough money to go somewhere, I go. I’m like you — when my time is up, I don’t want to have any regrets about the things I didn’t do.
Most of my family is hitting milestones this year (dad turning 70, mom turning 60, I’m turning 30 (and the house I grew up in turning 100!)) and I am starting to move some more active travel items that I have wanted to do my whole life up on the list, because really, why am I waiting?!
My mom would have loved to come with me to Peru next month, but she would have to take the train while the big reason I want to go is to hike the trail. I don’t want to get to that point anytime soon.
Yes, why ARE you waiting?? Lol. That’s great that you’re doing the Inca Trail next month! You would hate to put it off until YOU’RE 60, and not be able to hike it. Do it now while you’re young, girl!
Great post, and it’s so true. I am not travelling full-time but I try to take advantage of what travel opportunities I get. There’s so many people who put of travel for someday, but you never know if someday will come. I do tend to worry about money, it can get overwhelming, but I try to remember that I’m not the only person in the world with student loans and others costs. I can sacrifice quite a few things, but I’d never want to give up travel.
I’m obviously not advocating to travel if you really have NO money, or if you’re buried up to your eyeballs in debt. I feel like most people my age are struggling with money to SOME extent. But I don’t let that stop me from traveling. I save up for a few months or a year, and then I spend my money on travel. Do I have a lot of “extra” funds? No. But do I regret that at this point in my life? Not at all!
I could not agree MORE wholeheartedly. All we have is today, my desire is to use it for others and to travel.
Awesome, Kirsten. It’s great to see so many others embracing this “live for today” mentality! Thanks for reading.
I totally agree with the “life is short” philosophy. I try to make travel and other things I’m passionate about a big priority and try not to buy in to the wait to enjoy it later philosophy.
There ARE some times in life when a little delayed gratification is a good thing. But I don’t think travel (or anything you’re truly passionate about) should fall into that category!
ahhh couldn’t be more true. and i know that tree! that’s the southern shores of lake wanaka! oh, how i miss new zealand.
Actuallyyy, that tree is in Queenstown, on the shore of Lake Wakatipu! But you were close! 😉
I totally agree with you. Let’s live life to the fullest! 😀
Yes, let’s! Thanks for reading. 🙂
Life really is too short Amanda. Six weeks before I was due to leave for Asia last year I had a death. I was a total and utter mess but you know what? I packed my bags and left. I got on that plane and found life’s medicine – travel. If I’d stayed, work probably never would have given me the time off again, I would have been in the wrong financial state and before I knew it, I would have been 65 still a secretary telling people ‘I had dreams’.
Sure, money is a worry (and I worry A LOT about it) but at the end of the day, I would rather my happiness. My favourite place was Koh Tao in Thailand…it had rolling blackouts, the bumps on the road were enough to give you bruises and shower water came out as a trickle but I could have lived there the rest of my life.
In 40 days I’m about to get on a plane to Africa for 7 countries in six weeks. My family and friends tell me that I’m going to get killed but you know what my answer is? At least if I do then I would have died doing the one thing I loved…travel =)
I love that last paragraph, Toni! Life is way too short to live with fear and avoid doing the things you really want to do. I’m sorry to hear about your loss last year, but it’s great that you didn’t let it get you down or hold you back. I’m sure whoever it was that passed away wouldn’t have wanted you to skip out on your dreams anyway. I know if I died tomorrow, I wouldn’t want that to stop my loved ones from being happy.
So good on you for chasing those travel dreams!
I agree with your post. Life can be so unpredictable and delaying gratification for too long can mean that one never gets to experience the journey they’ve been dreaming of.
People give far too many excuses for why they don’t travel (or, worse, why they ‘can’t’ travel). And, unfortunately, many of these excuses mean that a lot of people don’t ever reach their travel goals.
We are in a similar situation – I don’t travel full time, don’t make a lot of money from my blog, and I work full time. However, seize the moment when you can and you don’t need to go far to do it! Today is a great reminder that we may not always have tomorrow as the bombing in Norway helps us remember our time is short and life is unpredictable.
Exactly, Jeremy. You never know what tomorrow will bring, so embrace today! The bombings in Norway are a scary reminder of this.
I like this post a lot! Makes me think of my uncle, who was, in many ways, my travel inspiration. He was waiting until he retired to travel (to have the time and money) , and his dream was to get an RV and go cross country.
Unfortunately, he had a stroke and never made it. He died a couple years later in a nursing home.
It was sad, but it inspired me to travel–and not to wait. Whenever I think about the money I don’t have (and the house I don’t own, etc.) but the incredible journeys I’ve taken, I think of him. I remember the first major trip I took–Egypt–at age 27. I was on the fence about going (because it was a tour and quite expensive). My uncle, who could barely speak (from the paralysis), told me–with his eyes and the few words he could say–to go. And I did. And I’m glad I did. I was able to show him the photos while he was still alive…and I could see the tears (of happiness) in his eyes.
What a touching story, Lisa. It’s good that you were able to share your first travel experience with you uncle, even if the circumstances were sad. And that’s exactly what I was getting to with this post — you never know when those travel dreams will suddenly become unattainable.
Thanks so much for your comment.