I just got back from a trip to the Middle East. My husband had been on a work assignment in Saudi Arabia for 18 months, and we decided to take some time to do some exploring in the region together (with our adult son) in between what was, and what is to be, in our lives.
Several people asked if I was going to post photos anywhere online, during the trip. I said no, and explained that in my 25 years as a journalist, even having to take my own photos for stories took away from my ability to be fully present where I was; able to immerse myself in an experience instead of thinking about how best to record it. To also focus on posting those images real-time would mean I’d have one piece of my brain back home at all times. Which means I’d miss a lot, including the focus, open-mindedness, and attendant opportunities for unexpected wonder and joy that come from being dis-connected from the noise of daily routine and life.
Focus is perhaps the most important part of that equation. New places and people and experiences can teach us a lot, but not if we’re always focused on ourselves: how we look, or what we’re going to show people back home. We need to look outward; connect, question, listen, look, and ponder what comes at us if we are to be changed by it. And that, to me, IS the point of exploring or traveling the world. To be changed. To see new perspectives, and experience and perhaps even understand things we have not encountered before.
Not that I haven’t ever taken a beach vacation just to chill and recharge. And I did take photos of us on the trip – all three of us love exploring the world, and I’ve found that when life gets hard, it’s good to have touchstones that help me remember the good times and laughter we’ve shared as a couple and as a family. Those smiles matter.
But what really struck me on the trip were the questions, thoughts, and sometimes-dizzying shifts in perspective that our travels encouraged (and, in some cases, forced) us to confront. Just a few: [click to continue…]