I love adventure. I have a wandering soul and thrive on meeting new people, seeing new places, and learning new things. My partner and I often take off on spontaneous weekend adventures in our van, going to concerts, distillery hopping, and just wandering. Two days before the Covid lockdown hit, we had returned from my dream vacation in Iceland. The transition from adventuring and my dream vacation to remaining safer at home, appeared as though it was going to be a challenge.
Life was clearly going to look different for a while, but I didn’t want different to equate to bad. I was determined to make the most of this time. Turns out, it ended up being easier for me than many other people I know. I truly believe that not having children made this a much easier time for me. I filled my days doing whatever I wanted because I had the freedom to do so. I was so grateful that I wasn’t responsible for virtual learning, entertaining, and worrying about children. I checked books off my reading list, only to find my list grew bigger than it was before. I’m in a book club, and we converted to virtual format to stay connected. I love sending snail mail, and this was the most opportune time to do it. I crafted small things that I could easily send in the mail or drop on people’s doorsteps. I enjoyed finding creative ways to stay connected and spread positivity. I reconstructed my entire exercise routine, tried new recipes, and learned many new things. If I’m being really honest, some days I just cuddled my dogs and watched Wonder Woman on repeat.
This time also gave my partner and I the opportunity to make some pretty significant life decisions and reinforced our childfree status. After research and many conversations, we pursued a vasectomy for him, and it was one of the best decisions we have ever made. While I wish it were under very different circumstances, I am grateful that we had this time to slow down and make this happen. We also bought our dream home. We weren’t planning this move so soon, but we had the ability to be flexible and make it happen. Within a week, we decided to sell, had an accepted offer on our dream home, and sold our old home.
As the world (hopefully) is transitioning slowly back to normalcy, I am ready for more adventures. While being at home, I have added many new destinations to my travel list, found many more adventures I want to embark on, and connected with people from around the world that I would love to meet! My partner and I, along with two of our best friends, have booked another Iceland trip for this fall! We spent much of quarantine sending pictures, videos, and news from Iceland back and forth, anticipating when we could return. We also booked an Alaskan cruise for next fall, and many more adventures in between. We have carefully planned these trips, continuing to keep Covid in mind, and have potential back up plans.
These lock downs have definitely been a journey. Everyone was unsure what to expect, and we have all just been doing the best we can. This time for me proved to be more significant in my personal life than I could have ever imagined. What seemed like potential struggle, turned into the best time for personal growth I have ever had. I will say it again, I wish this had happened under very different circumstances, but with that being said, I am grateful for the positivity I found, and am excited for the adventures that await.
