In the fall of 2019, I said, “I don’t think I need to travel any more. I enjoy finding adventure right where I am. I think I will just live my life here and not worry about traveling.” I was referring here to travel in the U.S. International travel was completely out of the question. This statement proved to one of the dumbest statements I have ever made.
I had traveled internationally when I was younger. I took three international trips from the time I was 14-19. I went to Israel, Albania, and France. I went to Ontario a couple of times while I studied to be a Pastor, but does that really count as an international trip? Then, for the next 20 years, I took zero international trips. I focused on other things. I got married. I lived in South Dakota. I had seven kids. I pursued higher degrees. It wasn’t the time.
four years after making that statement, I had visited Egypt twice, Mexico three times, Colombia twice, Spain twice, Quebec (that counts), and the Dominican Republic. I had a period of nine months where I went to Colombia, Egypt, Mexico, the Dominican Republic, Spain, and Colombia again.
What changed? Ironically, it was Covid, the thing that stopped international travel for most people. In March 2020, my eldest daughter, Anna (pictured above), was in her junior year. Covid shut down the school, and she did not go back to school the rest of the semester.
In the fall of 2020, schools opened up again here in TN. Anna had a decision to make. Would she do the online option and stay home, or would she attend classes with a mask on? My daughter has a light case of asthma and had struggled at times with breathing well at the old school building in the past. The idea of wearing a mask all day did not appeal to her. So, she tried the online option . . . and hated it. She is a real extrovert who loves to talk to people. Sitting in front of a screen all day did not work for her.
So, what to do? She decided to pursue homeschooling. She had done it in the past, and she thought it would work well in this situation. It was sad for her because she had really enjoyed her three years of high school. Nevertheless, she made that choice and went forward with it. Her senior year was working at an indoor waterpark . . . while wearing a mask. So, it turned out not to be too bad.
When she decided to homeschool, I was sad. I wanted her to experience the exciting events of her senior year: the friends, the celebrations, the special events, the graduation, and the trips. All that was now gone.
Then, I came up with an idea. What if we took a trip together somewhere in the world? In my mind, that would make up for a lot what she lost. So, one day, I said to her, “I think we should do a trip somewhere in the world. Where would you like to go, if you were going to go anywhere in the world?”
She immediately replied, “Scotland.”
I said, “Let’s do it.” Continue reading “How Covid Made Me a World Traveler”