That One Time Abroad
Okay, I know I am totally guilty of being that girl who has one too many stories that start with "That reminds me of this time in *insert destination here*." I'm okay with that. The funny thing about that though is how sometimes the smallest, most obscure things can remind you of your many travel memories.
Kelinking, Nusa Penida
My most recent example? I cut the bottom of my foot on a sharp stick on the beach. As I was cleaning my cut after a long day walking through the sand I remembered a few times on my last big trip, Bali and Madagascar.
Cleaning out a cut on my foot reminded me of the mediocre first aid I gave my cuts and scrapes because let's face it, travel can't always be gorgeous blue waters and hanging out with the sea turtles. I had a little laugh to myself remembering the time I busted my toe on the moldy toilet in our volunteer room in Bali. I also thought back to the week spent in a remote part of mainland Madagascar, tending to the infected bug bites whose wounds have scarred my ankles. I think back to gritting my teeth as I poured hand sanitizer into my wounds, then covering them with small pieces of cotton and KT tape while sitting on a fallen tree on the beach. What else are you to do when everyones first aid kits are running dangerously low on Neosporin and anti septic cream and everyone is out of band aids, all while ironically working to build a medical clinic? You make it work.
Using the few things left in my first aid kit to try to keep my wounds clean and from becoming too infected while spending the week covered in sand, dirt, and concrete.
Side note: that last trip showed me the importance of traveling with a well stocked first aid kit. I now have a list in my phone of all the things to include in a first aid kit for my next big trip, whenever that may be.
I guess all this is really to say that once again my memories from my travels remind me almost daily how grateful I should be. Grateful to be able to just hop in my car, stop into Walgreens and be able to buy a pack of band aids. Grateful to have access to medical attention, should something happen that requires it. Grateful that that medical attention is near by and easily accessible versus being an hours journey away by boat and tuk tuk.
Today, take a moment to be grateful for the moments that seem so mundane. They may be a luxury for someone else.