Welcome to the biggest adventure of my life
The thing about adventures is that they always start far earlier than anyone seems to realise and they usually don't end when you return home. People tend to think the adventure starts when you step outside the front door to begin the journey and they end when you leave or return home. The truth is, adventures are far more exciting and interesting than that. Your adventure starts when you start to believe you can do it and it doesn't end so long as the memories exist, even if they're in the form of photos or text messages. Most of the time, we don't even realise we've started a new adventure.
When I was 11 years old, my year group at school was divided into groups based on "ability" and asked to decide what they wanted to be when they were older. They made it sound as if when the ink dried on the paper, you were locked in for life and if you didn't succeed at your "dream" from when you were 11, you'd failed. Failure was so scary when age 11. They had us develop plans for how we would achieve what we wanted. It was supposed to motivate us to perform better in class and complete our homework. Or perhaps it was data collection. Sometimes, I wonder how many of us kids grew into the adults that fit the expectations we were forced to set ourselves at such a young age. If you had told 11 year old me that I would have moved to the US, I would have laughed in your face and walked away, assuming it was a joke.
I think 15 year old me would have believed that ten years later, that is where I would be. 15 year old longed to escape such a small town. The small town made it hard to breathe and stand strong, like a poppy trying its best on a gusty day. She didn't necessarily know how to go about it and didn't have a destination in mind, especially not one outside of Europe. She didn't believe there was a way of escaping, but she knew it was essential for survival. 15 year old me had hope of one day finding the right adventure outside of a town not designed for people like me. Perhaps this is where the adventure truly began.
The disbelief would have returned when I became 17 year old me. I'd tried to venture further out from our small town, but nothing had changed. It felt as if everything would always be the same.
At 18 years old, I hopped on a plane by myself to go and stay with someone for a month, whom she had only known for seven months. I hadn't flown since I was about 3 years old and I expected my parents to object to that adventure a little bit more than they did. My journey took me through Canada and then into the USA. I didn't know what I was doing when trying to navigate the airports, which resulted in me looking very lost. Apparently, in the aviation world, looking losts means they must drug check you at every opportunity. The security at this airport were yelling at everyone and I remember the second I left security, I went to the toilets to cry and phone my mum.
It's hard to pinpoint the start of the biggest adventure of my life, but easy to find some of the best and most crucial moments from within the adventure. These moments have shaped my adventure to be how it is today. They've provided hope, motivation, happiness and quite the chunk of stress. I've grown as a person throughout all of my adventures in life, with this one being the biggest one for self-growth, so far.
24 year old me thought that moving to the USA in 2024, after years of feeling like her life was on pause, would feel differently than it did. I expected to feel empty. The closing of such a drawn out and big adventure sounds as if it should feel different. This adventure didn't end when I stepped of that plane.
Wanting to start a new adventure is fun, but finding someone you want to join you for that adventure is the most magical part. Here's to my next adventure - North Carolina and the land of cups that are bigger than my head.
