The Adventure Starts Before You Leave
When does an adventure actually begin? Is it when you step onto the ship, board the plane or arrive at the place you have been waiting to visit?
I think it begins much earlier than that.
Today’s Pretty Way Walk came from my car
I had been awake since five o’clock that morning, but I couldn’t have breakfast or coffee because I needed to fast for a blood test. By the time I arrived at eight, I was ready to chew my frigging arm off.
I had the blood tests done, discovered that I needed to pay for two of them and finally got something to eat. My next appointment was with my lovely friend Junko to have my legs and underarms waxed because Paul and I are going on a cruise next week.
That left me sitting in the car with a little time to think. It wasn’t technically a walk, but it was still a Pretty Way Walk. Sometimes the pretty way has a parking space.
The unglamorous beginning of an adventure
A blood test and leg wax probably aren’t the moments that come to mind when you picture a cruise, but they are still part of getting ready to go.
The same applies to packing and working out which books will make the cut. I’m also deciding which art supplies to take, which is an important decision because I could happily pack the entire studio and then use three things.
None of this is the main event, but it builds the anticipation. Every little decision reminds me that the cruise is getting closer.
We can be too tired to enjoy the build-up
Sometimes we reach the point of booking a holiday because we’re tired, stressed and ready to get away. We become so focused on reaching the destination that everything beforehand feels like another collection of jobs to complete.
We need to find the suitcase, sort out the clothes and remember all the things that need charging. The holiday becomes the point where we have finally given ourselves permission to relax or feel excited.
When we look at it that way, we miss an entire part of the experience.
Anticipation is part of the adventure
Choosing a book for a cruise feels different from choosing something to read on an ordinary Tuesday. Packing art supplies carries the possibility that I might draw something new while looking out at the ocean.
Even getting waxed becomes a small marker that says, “We’re nearly there.”
The anticipation isn’t separate from the adventure. It is the beginning of it. You don’t need to wait until the ship pulls away or the plane leaves the runway before you enjoy what is coming.
What can you enjoy now?
Perhaps you have a holiday planned, an event coming up or a creative project you are looking forward to beginning. Whatever it is, think about what is happening between now and then.
There may be practical things to organise, but some of those moments deserve to be enjoyed too. They are already building the story of what comes next.
The adventure starts before you leave.
What adventure have you already got planned, and which part can you start getting excited about now?
