Now I recognize the immense privilege of being able to travel in the first place.
PHOTO NADIA CHOAs a 21-year-old on the brink of graduating from college, this is an incredibly scary time in my life. I am about to embark on an indefinite journey to Europe and I have no job offers, no future school options, no income flow and basically nothing to my name—which makes me feel terribly inadequate and anxious as I watch my more ambitious friends land awesome jobs. This is the time I’m supposed to get ahead and start on my lifelong career right? But despite my perceived shortcomings, every adult, life guide and Thought Catalog list tells me that carelessly running off to another country is what I should be doing at my age so I guess I’m doing the right thing.
Every time I start to freak out about the life decisions I’m making, I zoom out and think about this in the context of my entire life. My early 20s is the only time I can pack my few belongings to go live in a faraway land and take my chances. Because even though I have no job, no partner, no kids or anything else going for me, that’s precisely why I can book a one-way and leave without anything to hold me back. I have nothing to let go of, I have an incredibly idealistic mind and I feel like I have the world at my feet.
Anything and everything could happen to me. I could go broke, become a bartender, teach English, become homeless, fall in love, get married, get a “real” job or get deported. Not knowing is the most terrifying and exhilarating part of all this and I imagine that’s what adults miss about being young. Because despite having to trudge through years of uncertainty and anxiety, there are also endless possibilities for where you will end up. I’m not trying to promote ageist ideas that put a premium on youth, but the one privilege which my fellow early-20-year-somethings should capitalize on is that never will your life seem as open-ended and blank ever again, so now is the time to go folks.
Despite what we tell ourselves, we really don’t know that much about the world or life in general at this age, and what better way to learn than by visiting different places? Meet new people, solve problems and gain perspective. Traveling not only allows you to see the wonders of the world but also the problems and suffering that make you even more grateful for what you have and where you come from. Especially if you come from the United States, spending time in almost any other country will make you realize the huge amount of resources and opportunities that many simply do not have access to which we take for granted. See how big the world is and that way you will have a better idea of where you fit it into once you decide on where to settle.
Lots of people go with the intention of “finding themselves.” To me that phrase makes it seem like your self is a ghost-like apparition floating about in an unknown location, and if you magically happen to stumble upon the right place your “true self” will zip itself into your body and only then will you have found yourself and realize who you are. Realizing who you are isn’t an endpoint, it’s a process. You become in touch with yourself and your aspirations by learning your reactions, instincts and personality, and that takes time and new situations in which you are challenged to overcome obstacles according to your own ways.
Traveling the world is not just about finding yourself, it’s also about finding the ways through which you want to make it a better place. The world is big and has millions of problems so pick one you really care about and pursue the life that will be as meaningful to you as possible. As a young person who has yet to embark on any set path, you have the most options so take the time to explore, learn about yourself and find your passions.
Now I recognize the immense privilege of being able to travel in the first place. My family is of good socioeconomic standing, I have a top university education and I have two amazing parents who look out for me and wouldn’t want me to starve if I ever became forsaken somewhere and not everyone has the means for such mobility. If you have the nerve and enough capital, plunge yourself into whatever corner of the globe calls your name. So that once you see and experience how big, complex and wonderful the world is, you may use your privilege to give back and create your own personal path to change the world.
