We are all nomads. From the original Homo Sapiens who went beyond familiar territory in search for needed food and water, to the modern day adventure traveler following the call of that inner self that will not be denied, Man has always moved on. On to unknown destinations, on to what’s around the corner, what’s behind the mountain, what’s on the other side of the pond, He went. From somewhere in Africa, by land and by sea, over the Strait of Behring and on down the spine of the Americas, our deep need to search beyond pushed us on through, creating different and fascinating cultures as we populated our world.

What are we looking for? Why do we travel? The reasons are as plentiful as the places we want to see. We travel for adventure, to bring some sort of change into our lives. We travel for profit, for relaxation, for learning, and for forgetting. We travel to rest, to recharge; to get to a place; to achieve a goal; to have an adventure; to make more money; to meet someone or to run away from someone. To change our life, to enhance our life, to heal our life, we travel to grow or to escape; to hide or to expand. We travel to become less than we are, or to become more.

And what if what we are really looking for is the part of ourselves that is hidden from our everyday view? The part that is hidden from us by the routine of waking up, having breakfast, shaving, taking a shower, putting make-up on, getting in the car and going to work; the routine of caring for children; the routine of making a living; the routine of coming home and being tired, and having a meal, and perhaps watching TV, or doing some reading; and if we are lucky, making love. Finally going to bed, to dream unremembered dreams. Waking up to do it again the next day, and the next, and the next.

Perhaps, travel brings us more in contact with that hidden inner part of ourselves that needs to breathe, expand and love. The part of us that seeks, not only adventure, but Life itself.

Maggie Mauer, Ph.D.
Licensed Psychologist