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Thursday, September 15, 2011

Afterword

I have not posted a blog since June because it was my intention to end this traveling blog once I got home and was not traveling anymore. Considering that I was blogging nearly daily while traveling it was a hard habit to break but, I needed to end it somewhere. I have recently become inspired to add an afterword/post script so here it is.

Being back at home now for a good 4 months I have gotten back into the routine of "normal" life. I am not terribly unhappy although I have had some ups and downs since coming home. Then again nor am I extremely happy with my life either. I told myself right before I came home that I was not going to stagnate and let my life get dull. I did not want to fall back into the same old routines over and over.

In some aspects I have done a good job at doing new things and not being stagnant. I have been exercising much more than I ever did before, I have been seeing old friends and trying to make some new ones. I have also enrolling myself in an online TEFL (Teaching English as a Foreign Language) class because I am leaving America once again to go teach English in Thailand on Nov 4th.

That being said, I have done quite badly at keeping my life fresh in other ways. I still talk to my friends I met traveling but not as much as I should. I can do better there for sure. I promised myself I would get more involved in the Couch Surfing Community here locally and I haven't. I make up excuses like it is too far to drive or there is not much of one here but those are poor excuses. I can do better than this.

You know one of the best things about traveling for me was that I was not a typical American. Sure I had bad days and hard times just like anyone but I remember so clearly on my travels how for the most part I did not have any of the stress or worry of a typical person back at home. I was so care free and truly happy. I had many many good happy experiences on my travels but I want to share two of them with you that really stick out in my mind.

I met a British girl when I was living in Sydney who shall remain nameless to protect her privacy. There was nothing romantic with her and I because at the time she had a boyfriend. One day we decided to go to Hyde Park in Sydney. Think Central Park in New York and you will get a good mental picture. We ordered pizza and decided to eat in the park. We had quite a bit of left over pizza so we decided to feed the birds. At the time I was not working and nor was she. I remember how absolutely purely and completely happy and carefree I was. I had not a worry in the world and everything was perfect. This was almost two years ago now but I still remember everything clearly. I just knew that nothing could improve my day that day. If I would have died on that day I would have died totally happy. (other than the fact that I would die without close family by). Her and I still talk and look back on this day with fondness and it is a day I never will forget.

Ok, second story, I was now living in Auckland New Zealand and it was about 9 pm. I was walking down Queen Street (the main street in Auckland) and I heard two buskers (street performers) each playing their instruments. It was a man and a woman and they were on opposite sides of the street. The girl was playing a cello. She seemed classically trained and she was amazing. The grace and beauty in which she was playing stopped me in my tracks (literally) I was completely memorized by her. I then heard the guy playing "The Wind Cries Mary" by Jimi Hendrix. At that time everything melted away for me. Time stopped. I forgot everything I was doing. I simply stood there and listened to them play. Just me and their music. Totally pure and complete.

I was completely 100% content with my life at those two times. Not a care in the world. Even if the world ended at that exact moment I would be fine with it. Since coming home I have fallen back into the routine of rushing through life. Worrying about money,time and "stuff". I had hoped that I could find the same carefree happiness I had while traveling here in America but I just can't. I worry about our country, I worry about the economy, I worry about my family. All of this worry is a big motivation in me leaving again. I just want to come back after my time away refreshed and renewed and totally happy (and hopefully stay totally happy). I want to come back to a country that is back on track.

When I am traveling if someone asks where I am from I say Texas generally or America. I am proud of that but, I don't generally identify myself as just "An American" I feel that I am more a citizen of the world when I am traveling.  I am just a guy who tries to love everyone and everything. I enjoy meeting like minded people and we are just going through life without one set identity to be stereotyped by. I love the fact that almost every backpacker has the same free spirited open mindedness that you just don't find at home. There is SO many things that I got to do solely because I said "yes" to something and took a risk and it paid off.

I am not Anti American. I love my country and my family even though America has a lot of problems right now it will always be my home. I am hopeful things will get better in the future. I am just choosing to wait it out somewhere else in the world where I feel I can get more happiness out of life. Because whether I end up in staying in Thailand for a while or going to Colombia or somewhere in Europe I just feel that my zest in life is totally revived when I am traveling. I want to feel complete again and I am taking steps to make that happen. I have amazing family and friends who allow me to do this even if they don't fully understand. I know they will love me no matter where I am and will be here waiting for my return. They also know how much I love them.

Well this is officially the end of Traveling with Tyler Volume One. I hope you have enjoyed reading it as much as I have enjoyed living it. The next volume of this blog and my life starts when I start traveling again. All of you have my very best and thanks for reading this and being in my life. I look back with great memories of everywhere I have been and all the experiences I have had. I have had the privilege to meet some amazing people all over the world. Some only for a day others who are now my life long friends. I would not trade that for the world. -Tyler Horton.