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Resilient for Travel
Atypically, at 19, I decided to study and travel in Europe for a year. My parents were disdainful “Why would you want to do that?” If recent graduates went beyond my native Fargo, ND, they generally ventured no more 3 hours driving away — to ‘the cities’, the really adventurous might go as far as Chicago.
But, really — Europe, why was this life adventure so important to young adult me?
Read About It
Having been a voracious reader with a vivid imagination, I had read about ‘exotic places’ in many books and had long daydreamed about actually visiting such places. When, at age 17, I took my first airplane flight for a two week visit to Germany, I knew I wanted more. That trip showed me that an entire world outside of my Midwest did indeed exist.
Everything was interesting on that trip — road signs in German, food, cars, people. Bolstered by my success communicating with a family that spoke only German (greatly aided by the pocket German-English paperback dictionary that accompanied me everywhere during that week), I knew I had to return to Europe as soon as possible.
It’s only a Year
My parents were adamantly opposed to this idea. As they recognized that my boundless energy (enabling me to work multiple jobs while attending school) would soon provide me with the…
