Thank you to all those who did me wrong in the past.
You did not make me fragile...you made me indestructible.
About 3 months ago I returned from the most life changing, liberating, & simply amazing trip of my entire life.
I have struggled over the last few months to put my thoughts into words that can justify the point I am trying to get across but today I decided I am just going to sit down and let the words flow from my brain.
As many of you know I went backpacking around Europe for 5 weeks, alone.
Rewind to the beginning of May....I hit a huge rut in my life.
I felt depressed, unfulfilled, and simply unsatisfied with the life I was living.
I was caught up in this routine of working, and just going through the motions of life...which I have since realized it pretty common now a days.
There was little excitement, and it was slowly catching up to me.
My once bubbly personality slowly became nothing more than a hollow shell.
I remember the day I booked that plane ticket so clearly.
I went to the beach, grabbing one of my favorite self help books "You Are A Badass" on the way out the door, trying to go get a little inspiration.
Once arriving at the beach I opened the book to a random page, as I had read this book twice before already.
The first passage I read once I opened the book was my turning point.
After reading this, I immediately went home and booked a flight, putting very little thought into what I was actually getting myself into.
I had always dreamed of backpacking Europe one day. I remember being 17 when I was first introduced to the idea of it and I was so intrigued. I would watch youtube videos and follow travel blogs thinking to myself "one day I am gonna do this"...as the years pasted the idea lingered but I was constantly finding excuses for putting it off. Whether it was money, time, work, or simply being too scared to actually follow through with it.
Leading up to this day, life had been pushing me down for a few months.
I had 3 close friends move away from me, I found out the person I was seeing was seeing another person, and I was fighting a lot of my own mental and emotional health problems. It was all becoming too much and I knew something needed to give.
So I booked a flight.
When I booked this trip, I had no idea just how much my life was about to change.
Traveling does something to a person unlike anything else. If you have ever traveled, you know exactly what I'm referring to.
It makes you a better person.
It humbles you, it teaches you, it makes you comfortable in the unknown, and it makes you become the exact person you always wanted to be without fear of judgement or being unaccepted.
It heals you.
Solo travel is the most liberating thing I have ever done.
Because of this trip I have, and will continue to challenge myself and do all the things I want to do no matter how big or scary they may seem...because I know I can accomplish them.
What I want to shed a light on my friends is this...
the bad things that happen in your life serve a purpose.
This point has proven to be true for me time and time again.
I use to play the victim, every time something didn't go the way I intended it to I would become upset and loath over how nothing ever went my way.
But over time I have realized this,
nothing in life happens on accident.
The universe knows your path and purpose better than you ever will, and each hardship you face is molding you into the person you need to be to accomplish the best parts of your life.
They are setting you up to grow. So embrace these struggles with open arms and trust the process.
This was one of the hardest, but most life changing lessons I have learned thus far.
A fire has been lit inside of me in these last 6 months that I don't see going out any time soon.
If there is one thing you take away from this post I want it to be this:
do things that scare you
Throw rationalization out the window at least once.
Discard any doubtfulness that you or others may have.
Take all the courage you can muster up and dive into something that makes you uncomfortable.
I promise it is impossible to fail if you don't allow failure to be an option.
So view yourself from a point of victory, and I guarantee you your life will change in unimaginable ways.
-Jessica
