Some people are adventurers. Explorers. Others, are not.
Well. Now that I considered it, I think I am changing my mind.
I think what I meant to say, is this. All people are adventurers. Explorers. But we all have different ways of doing so.
There are some real adrenaline junkies out there. The kind that like to hike up to the highest mountain peaks of the world. Or even the low mountain peaks of the world. They love to be out in the elements and the wild. The man/woman against nature and beast. The people who like to rough it and prove their worthiness against the challenge. The thrill seekers who stand at the edge of the cliff and ski down the black runs. The bungee jumpers. The parachutists. The deep sea divers. The people who push themselves to their physical limits. The ones you see on the 5 o’clock news. Dead. From some horrible accident.
I am not one of those people.
I have never heard a news anchor person say, “This just in, Tom. Phoebe Elaine Martin died while drawing in her notepad, as she watched PBS.” Nope. The thrill-seeking is not for me. It never really has been.
My kind of exploration, as you see, is much different. I like to explore new knowledge, whether it is intellectual or spiritual. I like to learn things with my mind, and with my heart. I like to know the “why’s” and “hows” of things. I love to dive into books and facts. Exploring the unknown, in this way.
There are many means to finding adventure. I don’t think one is better than the other. Yet. I have found, with age and introspection, that I know myself better.
Imperfect me. And that’s okay.
I never liked riding roller coasters, going through Haunted Houses at Halloween, or even diving off the high board.
But if you gave me dirt and some water, and I would make mud creatures in their incredible mud worlds, until well after dark.
It is funny.
People love quotes about life, and some people even try to live by them. Take this by Hunter S. Thompson.
“Life should not be a journey to the grave with the intention of arriving safely in a pretty and well-preserved body, but rather to skid in broadside in a cloud of smoke, thoroughly used up, totally worn out, and loudly proclaiming “Wow! What a Ride!”
I always see that quote, and think, that it isn’t for me. I want to keep my well-preserved body — a fine and working, healthy body — up until the moment I die. Fine-tuned and in perfectly functional order. And at the end, I’d like to sit back quietly, take one last breath, and say, “Yep. That all was sort of nice.”
That’s more my speed.
The point is, we all go along different paths. And. There are currently seven billion paths happening on this earth right now. Some intersecting. Crossing and commingling. Others never touching, or never nearing one another. All very distinct and unique. But all of those paths are connected in the fact that they reside right here, on this same ball of dirt, and water.
It’s really not for us to judge how another person walks. It might be better if we kept our eyes on our own feet, and decide what adventure is ours — the one that touches our souls. The biggest and best adventure we can ever make for ourselves, is the one, in which we live the life of our dreams.
And so we travel on, each of us in our own way. On to our next adventure.
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“The purpose of life is to live it, to taste experience to the utmost, to reach out eagerly and without fear for newer and richer experience.”
― Eleanor Roosevelt
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“Keep reading. It’s one of the most marvelous adventures that anyone can have.”
― Lloyd Alexander
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“Life is a blank canvas, and you need to throw all the paint on it you can.”
― Danny Kaye
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