travel

“You must live in the present, launch yourself on every wave, find your eternity in each moment. Fools stand on their island opportunities and look toward another land. There is no other land, there is no other life but this.” Henry David Thoreau

/ Sloan / Leave a comment

I should be writing as much as possible. I should be telling the world about all the amazing thoughts and travel ideas I have for this upcoming adventure to Thailand. But in reality, right now I am trying so hard to live ‘right now’. I am doing what I want. I’m going out for drinks mid-week to be with my friends as much as I can. I’m eating out (I never eat out,) I’m cuddling up on the couch with my roommates to watch a movie because who knows the next time I’ll be able to do that is?

I’m running. I ran for 2 hours through the woods with my friend on Sunday. We ran and talked about our lives. We didn’t talk about two weeks from now, not about 4 months from now when she leaves for South America, we talked about life and where we are. NOW. Now is enough right now. I ran again for 2 hours on Monday, why? Because I could, because I had time, and I had strength in my legs, because the woods were there calling my name.

Monday’s run was alone. I needed to see if I could do it on my own without the encouragement and the footprints of my friend to follow.  I did it, alone. I was there, at that moment loving on the mountains, wondering what the mountains of Thailand were going to be like—and then I dragged myself back to Ashland and reminded myself to just BE HERE. I am here for two more weeks, and I’m going to BE HERE for two more weeks; mind, body, and soul.

 

And then, only then am I off.

Fear-less?

/ Sloan / 3 Comments

A friend of mine said to me yesterday “There are two ways to live your life: live like your not afraid of anything and live like you are afraid of everything.” I don’t often disagree with this highly educated college professor, but after thinking about this statement for a while I do disagree. I’m living my life. I’m afraid and nervous and basically freaking out at each decision that I seem to be making—but I’m damn excited.

 

I’m living my life pretending I’m not afraid.

 

Keep moving forward

Focus

/ Sloan / 4 Comments

I’m having a hard time focusing on what is directly in front of me. I SHOULD be doing: packing, organizing, sending my visa, enjoying Oregon for the last month I have left… but what am I actually doing? Watching a movie and looking up places to travel in Thailand, looking for places to travel after Thailand, trying to decide if I should come back to the States after my stint in SE Asia, trying to decide if I want to get a real job or try and continue traveling some way, some how.

 

While on my run yesterday I looked ahead at the opposite side of the Valley; it was rolly horse and wine country. And then I looked behind me; mountainous, lush…well, mountains—full of trails, wild life and switchbacks to climb. For the first time in a while I looked at them, I realized their beauty. When you see something every day you don’t realize how amazing it is until it’s almost gone. I love those mountains, I haven’t taken advantage of them and should be using them every day, but most days I’m not.

I’m unable to focus. I’m so excited to get going and get out of here that I’m not living every moment I have left in Oregon. I’ve always been bad at living in the moment, being where I am—I will be focusing the here and now on for the next 29 days. Yes, I have a lot to do, but I also can’t wish these precious few weeks away.

 

Or at least trying to be.