It's easy to feel trapped where you are and subsequently become dissatisfied with your present situation. You just want to toss everything up in the air and just fly away. I am guilty of doing this, and my goodness, all of those beautiful Pinterest photos of far away destinations does not help. The wanderlust hit me especially hard during my senior year of college. It was a time when I should have felt content with myself, I mean, I was finishing up my two degrees and graduating with honors in one. I should have felt like I was at the top of my game, which, in retrospect, I really was. But I was dissatisfied, because, simply put, I wanted to travel. And I still do, because I have officially been bitten by the wanderlust bug.
Here's what happens when the wanderlust bites you hard:
1) You can't stop looking at pictures of far away locations (damn you Pinterest) and imagining yourself in them.
2) You begin to incessantly stalk travel bloggers on social media and vicariously live through them (le sigh internet, you're a real enabler).
3) You start planning out your fantasy trip in your head, even going as far as to look up plane tickets and possibly creating a budget, in which case, go you! You are at least trying to make it happen!
4) You quickly realize, if you haven't already, that you only occupy a small space in the world, and that there are so many other spaces to see and experience, as a result of #1 and #2.
5) You want to research and learn everything you can about world geography and culture. Sure, you know about London and Paris, but you begin to appreciate the grossly underrated places in the world (i.e. that "underrated European town" or countries that you would've never considered visiting).
6) As a result of #5, you start to become more curious about the entire world and attempt to expand your horizons (which is a good thing, keep an open mind!).
7) All you want to talk about is travel, much to everyone's annoyance after a while.
8) You will feel dissatisfied and disheartened if you can't make it happen, but you will learn to hope and you will make a game plan for your future trip.
9) As cheesy and ridiculous as it sounds, wanting to travel gives you a sense of direction, because you now have a definite goal to achieve. In fact, if you really want to make it happen, set a goal for yourself and have a game plan!
10) Although you will more than likely see your home as unsatisfactory as a result of your wanderlust and 'grass is greener on the other side' mentality, you know in your heart that you will always want to return home.
Whether you feel/do all or just one of these things, I wish you happy travels. If you feel stuck where you are and just wanna jump across the ocean, just take a step back and see what you have. I tell you this because you probably have more going for you than you think. However, if given the opportunity, do travel because it WILL expand your horizons.
Best Wishes,
The Pseudo Southerner
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