Twenty years from now you will be more disappointed by the things that you didn't do than by the ones you did do. So throw off the bowlines. Sail away from the safe harbor. Catch the trade winds in your sails. Explore. Dream. Discover.

—Mark Twain

Here we are at the beginning of a new year with hopes for a better, more exciting and fortuitous year than the last one. It’s like Father Time gives us these first few days to revisit the past year, regroup and start shedding things that didn’t work and start creating new and better ways to help us dive face first into the new year — vowing that this year will be different, better and far happier. A new journey.

If you are like me, many of the things that I swear I will change for the better, will stay the same. There is one thing that I know will change this year. I will get out and discover new places and more exciting adventures because that is my nature. Through the years, I have discovered that the best way to find excitement and joy is to push aside that ever challenging emotion called fear and that hit the road of change, changing your life’s journey.

My big life lesson in fear came years ago when I worked as an art director/creative director for a large company in North Carolina. Their home base was in New York City and I spent a lot of time on 5th Avenue. It was a great job but after eight years working almost 80 hours a week, I burned out. One rainy day while driving, I approached a stoplight and when I stepped on the brake my car hit a slippery spot and I slid into the car in front of me. I couldn’t control my emotions. I was out of control and It was the catalyst that broke the camel’s back. I knew I had to make a change. 

Fear is the monster that holds us back. Many people feel stuck and can’t see a way out of a bad situation. I had to reach the point of no return and I did that by putting blinders on and taking steps toward change. I registered for school in Northern Minnesota, put my money on the table and then worked my way out. I gave my notice, sold all of my belongings, re-financed my car, rented a small U-Haul for the small personal things I did want to keep and drove away. There was no turning back. It was the best decision I ever made. I created a new life journey. 

I use the same mindset anytime I see a road block ahead or a bad situation that requires a bit more courage or bravery. Many times, I depend on friends and family to help talk things through before I make a decision. But for the most part, I find that putting one step forward toward the point of no return works best for me. 

Traveling will be a huge part of 2022 for me. I spend hours scouring the internet for paths less traveled and challenging activities that push my comfort zone. Some of the best parts of 2021 were the days on the road. My dog Duncan and I journeyed across the south-west and then down the west coast over to the east coast, up and across the Northwest states and last but not least, to the Frozen Tundra in the mid-west. My Ford Ranger is now my all-time favorite vehicle. Traveling across highways is by far the best way to see the many cultures in the states of our Country. For example, the history that is evident along Route 66 would never be seen from an airplane.

My love for traveling started after reading two of my favorite books; Blue Highways by William Least Heat Moon and Travels with Charlie by John Steinbeck. In Blue Highways, the author circles the outer reaches of the country using only blue highways, the highways least traveled. He traveled through Ely, Minnesota where I went to school. In Travels with Charlie, Steinbeck writes about traveling with his dog. Both are excellent reads that stir up the restlessness in the wayward traveler. 

A journey isn’t just traveling from one place to another. It can describe life-changing scenarios that may or may not include vehicles. Around the 1400s, the word journey was used to describe one day, for example; 52 journeys equaled 52 days or even 52 days of work. I think of journeys as adventures that stem from one point to another despite the number of days. A journey fills us with knowledge about the places we visit. It’s the great search for the meaning of life. I feel blessed to have the drive to see what is behind the next corner or what the view looks like from the top of a mountain. In “The Book of Mirdad,” by Mikhail Naimy, the narrator wanders in search of answers to life’s big questions only to find that the answers were inside him all the time. Each journey we take may bring us to the same conclusion. Until the journey is over, enjoy every step along the trail, every view along the highway, every person you meet, and love every minute of life, because as I learned the hard way last year, the journey is ever-changing.