As a parent, I have made a career out of giving advice. Get good grades. Don't forget to floss. Drive carefully. As a society, we encourage young adults to stay in school, get a good job, be safe. Always, always be safe. And these are all good things. But I would like to propose that we should not forget to tell them to sometimes do something crazy. Take a risk. Follow your heart occasionally. Make sure to seek a little adventure. I would also like to propose that we look in the mirror and tell our middle aged selves the same thing.
I don't think anyone who knows me would describe me as adventurous. I live a quiet life. In 1993, I lost my job. I wasn't fired, but the Congressman I worked for decided to retire and not run in the next election. I had worked for good grades in college, did an internship with his office and was hired shortly after graduation. I did the right thing, the expected thing. When he retired and my position ended, I should have started looking for another job and continued down the road to success. But I didnt. Instead, that summer my husband and I packed up our Plymouth Sundance with a tent and a couple of bikes and hit the road for an epic camping trip that took us through Iowa, Wyoming, Utah, Idaho and Montana. We drove through glorious mountains, explored Yellowstone, watched a movie at a drive-in theater in Pocatello and almost burned our tent down near Salt Lake City. This was before cell phones, so occasionally I would find a pay phone and call my parents so someone knew where in the world we were. For weeks, we camped and hiked and explored and drove hours down tumbleweed-strewn highways. It was the first time our relationship had existed on its own terms, outside the routines of school and then work. It was adventure.
Adventure can be anything that takes you outside your comfort zone. Two years ago, I had the opportunity to go backpacking in the Porcupine Mountains with a group of women. I had never been backpacking before and wasn't even sure I could carry a heavy pack down my block, much less up and down rough mountain trails. But I said yes. And I did it! For four days, I carried my 40 pound pack through the woods, along the lake, in hot sun and rain. I met some strong, adventurous women
who taught me how to filter water and how to doctor a blister. I watched the sun set over Lake Superior and drank my coffee on the same rocky beach the next morning. It was sweaty and tiring, but I one evening I got to wash the sweat off in a pool at the base of a small waterfall. I walked for hours and talked with my good friend about how simple life was with only one cup and bowl to your name, and we wondered why we complicate our lives with more than that. It was definitely out of my comfort zone, and completely worth it.
Sometimes it's good for the soul to do something crazy, to break out of our everyday life and role, to enlarge our vision of who we are. Maybe you stand in line for 14 hours to get on the front rail to see your favorite band play. With people you met online. That would be crazy, right? Or it might be one of the best days ever. I've found that as people get older, we tend to play it safe. But good stories don't come from playing it safe. They come from trying new things. From challenging ourselves. From travel to new places. (Sitting by a resort pool with a margarita is fun, but it's not adventurous.)
Even though our finances are tied up in paying off debt this year, I am still planning on a little
adventure to feed my soul. There won't be any concerts for me this summer, but my husband and I are renting a cabin for a few days of hiking and kayaking and swimming in and near Lake Superior. Also, I may have an opportunity to travel to Cuba at the end of the year. I hope as we all hit middle age, we say yes to adventure. Get dirty, get sweaty, go somewhere new, do something a little dangerous. And I hope we remember to tell our grown kids to do the same. It’s all well and good to get the degree, secure the job, buy a nice car and house, but life is more exciting when you make time for the unexpected.
What unexpected, adventurous things have you done, or are planning to do?
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