Wanderlust Travel and how it began for me.

My wanderlust for travel began slowly and the desire to see the far corners of the earth has intensified. People say , all things happen for a reason and when my daughter of 21 years passed away in 2000, I was not prepared to loose her .  That set my thinking in motion about how short life really was .  Up to that point- I had married, had children , divorced and had lived my life in the shadow of others . My days were designed to meet the demands of daily life and others needs.  When my daughter passed- I began to think- there just had to be more and it was up to me to make my life count for me.  My first question was to ask myself what was my dream. I simply had never thought about it. I was adequate enough at planning meals, housework, managing the kids but had never really thought about my own dreams.  One simple question changed everything for me and that was the blessing that my daughter left me with. She lived life full tilt and from heaven- she was challenging me to do the same.  So my first quest, came to me when I was at a dinner party and I met a young woman that was about to leave for Spain to walk the Camino de Santiago.  Speaking with her that night- I had no idea what she was about to do. I had never heard of the Camino and the idea that someone was going to walk 12 to 15 miles a day for 30 days just seemed utterly amazing to me.  The idea drew me in and I knew I would someday walk the same walk.  My first trip to the Camino was only for a week but I discovered on that journey that there was an enlightenment to walking with no plans other than a daily destination.  There were no reservations to sleep each night and no real idea where I would eat,  Each step became lighter as I realized that I did not need to be in charge of everything and even what I thought I had to carry in my backpack became less important to me. I began to leave a trail of things behind- shirts, socks, books, etc ,   The less I carried , the more freedom I felt.  I walked and talked with people from all over the world . Walking was like returning to my childhood when I did not have a care in the world. That is what travel has become for me- walking and discovering the simple pleasures in life.  Having tea with a good friend in Barcelona, eating Pulpo and drinking wine at a picnic table, a bag lunch at a waterfall... walking the paths of the less traveled route and seeking new adventures, new truths, new ideas but most of all discovering who I am meant to be .