One Girl's Wanderlust Adventures

I have really enjoyed my flexible schedule over the past month.  It’s allowed me to catch up with friends and family, to see parts of the country I haven’t seen before, to collect new experiences, to sleep in.

But after a month, I’ve discovered that living an unplanned life requires, well, lots of planning.  As soon as I land in one place, I’m researching where to go next, where to stay, how to get there, who to see when, what to do. I’m constantly packing and repacking and never quite fully unpacking. Ironically, not having regular commitments means I feel even more wed to my irregular To Do list.  Fearful I will forget some important, but rare, task like getting a 5 month supply of Malaria meds. Most difficult for me, though, is that is requires a LOT of diligence to be active and to eat healthfully while on the road.

So I find myself longing for routine.  Ironic for a girl who doesn’t like to be confined or restricted. I’ve discovered that a certain level of routine may actually provide greater freedom than having no routine at all. Routine simplifies things. It requires less mental effort. It’s comforting.  I don’t want an “8-5 full time job” routine (at least not yet), but some resemblance of routine would be good.  Maybe a ‘lady who lunches’ type of routine.

So today I took a health day.  A time out day.  I ran.  I did yoga.  I cooked healthful meals packed full of super foods.  I meditated. I snuggled up on the couch of my temporary home and watched bad TV.  I read a book. I regrounded myself. And tomorrow, I’ll be ready to start anew.