Planning for this next phase of travel has been different for a number of reasons. I originally thought that I would spend the next three months in India, so how did I end up boarding a plane to Sri Lanka?
It’s not that far of a stretch actually. Sri Lanka is near India and I felt it was a way to ease myself into a climate which I expect will be more intense than I’m used to (I could be wrong). Getting a visa is easy for a month in Sri Lanka and two months in India, so the timing worked well. And I’ve heard good things about Sri Lanka, which has been in the back of my mind for some time, so I bought a ticket.
To walk your path, all that is required is the will to do so.
On the way to the Raleigh airport in NC, we passed a billboard advertising the Mega Millions Lottery. My brother asked me what I’d do if I won $50 million. I honestly didn’t know how to answer.
“Still travel,” he said.
“Yeah,” I responded, then added with a chuckle, “but stay in better places.”
It’s the most honest answer I could give. Money may make part of this journey easier at times but it won’t give me the why and the what — Why am I living this version of life? What do I want to do with it? Who do I want to be?
It won’t make me a better version of myself nor will it grant me the appreciation of the experience of living in the moment. It certainly won’t write the next blank page for me nor will it aid me in having more meaningful interactions with the people in my life.
So what does this tell me?
That I would still be going to Sri Lanka with a winning lottery ticket.
Bound for Sri Lanka
I have booked three nights in Colombo, the capital city of Sri Lanka. From what I have read it is easy to travel by train and there is even a train ride from Kandy to Ella that is listed as one of the most beautiful rides in the world.
However when trying to plan out the rest of my trip beyond Colombo I was running into walls. When I started to get stressed and frustrated, I took a moment to think about it and realized that maybe it’s because I’m not supposed to plan it all out.
When you’re doing what you’re supposed to, the path flows forward. When you’re not, you feel resistance.
I’ve found this to be truer and truer the more I’ve come to experience, so with this phase of travel, I’m stepping back and making room for the universe to act.
Trust in the process. Trust in yourself.
I have goals set for the next three months including what I want my experience to be, but as for a fast and solid plan? Not so much.
When I first decided to travel over three years ago, I didn’t have an exact plan. I had a direction and a place to put my next step with the belief that once I took that step, the next one would be revealed.
To this day, that belief has not failed me.
This will be a greater test, however, as I am giving way more than I ever have. So, as with most things, my feelings are mixed, but I know that staying where I am — physically and metaphorically — is not the path forward.
So it makes sense that the planning for this phase of travel has been different because what is to come next is different — the experiences I want to have, the way I’m traveling and the places I am looking to go. All different from what I’ve known before.
And hopefully it will all lead to new writing about stories that have yet to be lived.
See you from the other side of our rock.