“I went to the woods because I wished to live deliberately, to front only the essential facts of life, and see if I could not learn what it had to teach, and not, when I came to die, discover that I had not lived.”
Henry David Thoreau
Several years ago I moved to the woods and discovered how to live. I’ve traveled a lot, but that isn’t living, necessarily. In fact, travel, in and of itself, is exhausting and, at times, frustrating – especially when you travel alone to Europe and miss your connecting flight from London to Frankfurt because of a flight delay in Denver (right, Michael); or, just a week prior to that event, you politely stand in line to check into your flight to realize you were in the wrong line and missed that non-refundable flight (right, Joshua). We all have travel nightmares, but we also come home with hundreds of photos and memories from such amazing adventures.
I guess what I have been primarily thinking about these past few days has been how to make every, ordinary day an adventure. It is up to me to choose the events to make a normal day a great adventure. This box of Anywhere Travel Guide adventure cards has helped me do just that. Here are just a few of my tiny adventures that anyone could do at any time – without traveling thousands of miles or camping in a tiny trailer.
I ate something I hadn’t eaten before, which may not be considered too adventurous. Sure, I tried Vermont cider and maple syrup, but that’s not the same. When I walked into a cheese factory, I noticed what looked like green caterpillars sitting in a bowl with a jar labeled “Pickled Fiddleheads.” As much as I’d love to compete on Survivor, I’m unsure if I could eat crazy gross foods. However, I had this Anywhere Adventure card in my pocket that suggested I eat something new, so I popped the little creature into my mouth. It tasted similar to a pickle covered in grass. It wasn’t disgusting, but not something I’d eagerly purchase to bring home to my table. When I had a moment, I investigated fiddleheads and discovered that they happen to be wild fern fronds that are easily harvested and eaten as a vegetable. Fiddleheads are high in vitamins A and C and are thought to be carcinogenic! All in the name of adventure.
I’ve collected my three memories/items to bring home as a gift for someone who needs them. Think fair trade, Declaration of Sentiments, and Cottey College duck jacket. If you follow that sentence, then you will get something when I return. That was easy, as I love looking at the world and thinking about how would this person or that person find enjoyment in these moments vicariously through my experiences. I may continue this one throughout my travels. Likewise, I was given a handmade leather Native American medicine bag to collect my own items, for which I am having a tremendously difficult time finding “things” valuable enough to be honored to be placed in that bag. Here’s a fantastic article about the tradition of the medicine bag to help explain
After touring a cider mill, I asked the clerk where I should go next. He gifted me an apple cider donut in honor of National Donut Day then sent me to a chocolatier a couple miles down the road. Good call.
I’m not a shopper and don’t particularly enjoy having stuff to dust sitting around my home, so buying something that makes me curious was limited to a couple of unusual cheeses from the cheese factory in Vermont and a tiny trailer coaster that I hung in my trailer that states, “Home is where you roam” with a cute little trailer painted on it. Unnecessary, but curious, perhaps.
Finally, I bought a postcard today and mailed it from an unusual place with an amazing view of the sky and the world below. Although the Anywhere Adventure card states to send it to someone I haven’t seen in a while, I guess that could be just about anyone at this point. Dad, notice the postmark!
Chasing Verbs 