The Dangerous Business of Going Out Your Door
"It's a dangerous business...going out of your door...You step onto the Road, and if you don't keep your feet, there is no knowing where you might be swept off to." -Bilbo Baggins
[Warning: I just finished the first Lord of the Rings book and it was terrific. So I may make more than one LOTR reference in the upcoming posts...]
We are on the eve of a trip that is two years in the making...which can add some pressure to a trip and raise some doubts. Can this trip live up to my expectations? Are the Swiss Alps really as impressive as I remember? Is it worth it? Can't I get the same experience here in Ohio?
The answer to that last question is obviously "no"...sorry, Dad... but it was beautiful today in the Capital City. And on such a beautiful day, I will address 4 ways that going out of your door can be scary, hectic, worrisome or dangerous. [This is mostly a personal pep talk and response to my own thoughts, but maybe someone else can be helped by this, too.]
1. Going out your door can be scary. For those who are heavy planners - and by that I especially mean those people who (like me) spend countless hours investigating all the sights in all the places, who have already began planning new trips out of the places that had to be cut from this trip, and who have already lived out their itinerary a few dozen times in their mind and in research - for those people, actually going on the trip is a bit scary. Can the real thing be as wonderful as the ideal? Is going out the door going to be a let down? Now that the planning stage is done, is all the fun over?
First off, the answers to those questions are most likely also "no". This is where the fun begins. Yes, your actual trip will look different than your itinerary. That is the nature of travel and especially with small children. I looked at the itinerary from our first trip to Europe with our son and we probably did half of it. And it was the best trip of our lives. We slowed down and enjoyed ourselves. We spent a day living like a local and not like a tourist. And, we were left with a great excuse for a return trip! Rick Steves wisely (and to his own fiscal profit) says, "Always assume that you will come back."
And as for all your planning, it was worth it. Even if something changes or needs cut out altogether, which will happen when traveling with toddlers, don't get depressed and feel that it was a waste. Don't think to yourself "Why even bother planning?" When things need to change, your time planning becomes all the more valuable. You have a starting point to improvise from. You have options that you have already considered. And in my case, the fact that I planned so much instills confidence in my wife that however life happens, we'll make it through, whatever we get into. But the key to all this is flexability. If you are unwilling to bend, then going out your door should be scary, as the rest of the world may not be aware that you had plans.
2. Going out your door can be hectic. For me the most hectic part of traveling is packing. There is a lot to do, especially with children involved. Thankfully, my wife also knows this and has helped make things run smoother.
Three things that have helped are: starting with a packing list from someone who has gone before (Rick Steves packing list is good) and adjusting it to your needs, setting a "packed by date" that is a few days in advance of the trip, and gradually putting things aside that you want packed. I call it "Graduated Packing". In other words, get an idea of what you want to pack and elongate your packing window so that you are not rushing, and all the more as you see the day drawing near.
3.Going out your door can be worrisome. It can be nerve-wracking to be away from your house for a period of time. Home can be comfortable, home can be safe, and who is watching all your stuff while you are gone??!!!!!
It is important to make sure that you notify trusted friends, family and neighbors about your trip and to make arrangement for the mail and pet sitting. As Sirena would say "Someone has to love on Coco (our 15-year-old chihuahua) while we are gone." We try to find house sitters while we are gone for more than a week, and as chance has it, the person who watched our house on our last Europe trip is going with us on this one.
As for the comforts of home, your familiar surroundings and favorite chairs, don't worry, they will still be there. And who knows, you might just find something new to love outside your four walls? And then you can bring it home and make it your new favorite thing (such as a heavy Alpine down comforter and duvet set).
4. Going out your door can be dangerous, but not in the way that you may initially think. Going out your door can be dangerous because you might love it. You might be changed by it. You may want to leave again and again. Wanderlust is contagious, and you give it to yourself. Your views and opinions will be challenged by experiences in other cultures and in beautiful places. Seeing poverty can change you, seeing quality can inspire you, seeing history can put things in perspective and being high in the mountains can simultaneously bring about fear, awe and wonder.
The unforeseen obstacles can become your fondest memories. The crazy thing your child does can be the very thing that bridges you across the language barrier with another person. And sometimes the good times you had planned will be crowded out with elongated great times. The danger of unexpected delight, friendship and memories is very real.
And that danger alone can make the scary, hectic and worrisome parts of going out your door worth it.
"The Road goes ever on and on Down from the door where it began. Now far ahead the Road has gone, And I must follow, if I can, Pursuing it with eager feet, Until it joins some larger way Where many paths and errands meet. And whither then? I cannot say."
-Also from Lord of the Rings
[Warning: I just finished the first Lord of the Rings book and it was terrific. So I may make more than one LOTR reference in the upcoming posts...]
We are on the eve of a trip that is two years in the making...which can add some pressure to a trip and raise some doubts. Can this trip live up to my expectations? Are the Swiss Alps really as impressive as I remember? Is it worth it? Can't I get the same experience here in Ohio?
The answer to that last question is obviously "no"...sorry, Dad... but it was beautiful today in the Capital City. And on such a beautiful day, I will address 4 ways that going out of your door can be scary, hectic, worrisome or dangerous. [This is mostly a personal pep talk and response to my own thoughts, but maybe someone else can be helped by this, too.]
1. Going out your door can be scary. For those who are heavy planners - and by that I especially mean those people who (like me) spend countless hours investigating all the sights in all the places, who have already began planning new trips out of the places that had to be cut from this trip, and who have already lived out their itinerary a few dozen times in their mind and in research - for those people, actually going on the trip is a bit scary. Can the real thing be as wonderful as the ideal? Is going out the door going to be a let down? Now that the planning stage is done, is all the fun over?
First off, the answers to those questions are most likely also "no". This is where the fun begins. Yes, your actual trip will look different than your itinerary. That is the nature of travel and especially with small children. I looked at the itinerary from our first trip to Europe with our son and we probably did half of it. And it was the best trip of our lives. We slowed down and enjoyed ourselves. We spent a day living like a local and not like a tourist. And, we were left with a great excuse for a return trip! Rick Steves wisely (and to his own fiscal profit) says, "Always assume that you will come back."
And as for all your planning, it was worth it. Even if something changes or needs cut out altogether, which will happen when traveling with toddlers, don't get depressed and feel that it was a waste. Don't think to yourself "Why even bother planning?" When things need to change, your time planning becomes all the more valuable. You have a starting point to improvise from. You have options that you have already considered. And in my case, the fact that I planned so much instills confidence in my wife that however life happens, we'll make it through, whatever we get into. But the key to all this is flexability. If you are unwilling to bend, then going out your door should be scary, as the rest of the world may not be aware that you had plans.
2. Going out your door can be hectic. For me the most hectic part of traveling is packing. There is a lot to do, especially with children involved. Thankfully, my wife also knows this and has helped make things run smoother.
Three things that have helped are: starting with a packing list from someone who has gone before (Rick Steves packing list is good) and adjusting it to your needs, setting a "packed by date" that is a few days in advance of the trip, and gradually putting things aside that you want packed. I call it "Graduated Packing". In other words, get an idea of what you want to pack and elongate your packing window so that you are not rushing, and all the more as you see the day drawing near.
3.Going out your door can be worrisome. It can be nerve-wracking to be away from your house for a period of time. Home can be comfortable, home can be safe, and who is watching all your stuff while you are gone??!!!!!
It is important to make sure that you notify trusted friends, family and neighbors about your trip and to make arrangement for the mail and pet sitting. As Sirena would say "Someone has to love on Coco (our 15-year-old chihuahua) while we are gone." We try to find house sitters while we are gone for more than a week, and as chance has it, the person who watched our house on our last Europe trip is going with us on this one.
As for the comforts of home, your familiar surroundings and favorite chairs, don't worry, they will still be there. And who knows, you might just find something new to love outside your four walls? And then you can bring it home and make it your new favorite thing (such as a heavy Alpine down comforter and duvet set).
4. Going out your door can be dangerous, but not in the way that you may initially think. Going out your door can be dangerous because you might love it. You might be changed by it. You may want to leave again and again. Wanderlust is contagious, and you give it to yourself. Your views and opinions will be challenged by experiences in other cultures and in beautiful places. Seeing poverty can change you, seeing quality can inspire you, seeing history can put things in perspective and being high in the mountains can simultaneously bring about fear, awe and wonder.
The unforeseen obstacles can become your fondest memories. The crazy thing your child does can be the very thing that bridges you across the language barrier with another person. And sometimes the good times you had planned will be crowded out with elongated great times. The danger of unexpected delight, friendship and memories is very real.
And that danger alone can make the scary, hectic and worrisome parts of going out your door worth it.
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