Most of us have heard the saying, “Not all those who wander are lost.” I have to admit, for the longest time those words sounded elegant and dreamy to me but I never fully understood what they meant, not until one day on a family vacation a few years ago. My dad and I were standing out on our balcony, when our friend Dakota came wandering below us. When my dad asked him what he was up to and asked why he looked lost, Dakota took another look around the surrounding area, scooped up his shoes that he found laying in the sand and said, “not all those who wander are lost” with a big goofy smile on his face before running away.

It was at that moment that it clicked for me. Wandering can have a purpose, it doesn’t have to be aimless. For Dakota, his wandering that morning was done with the purpose of finding his misplaced shoes.

My wandering has served a large purpose in my life in many ways.

My wandering has brought me out of my shell, my conversational skills have grown immensely.

My wandering has helped me to feel like I can handle any situation thrown my way. Let’s be honest, being able to successfully ask a pharmacist who speaks only Italian for medicine for a cold sore using only made up sign language or going to a doctor in a third world country really makes you feel like you can handle a pretty wide variety of situations.

My wandering has helped me meet new, beautiful, creative, adventurous souls who I am so fortunate to know.

My wandering has brought me to where I sit now, a place where I am more sure of myself and more confident in myself than I have ever been.

So my advice? Wander on. Go searching for something new, you never know what you may find. And you want to know my biggest secret? It is okay to get lost along the way. We all do, so don’t let that scare you. Don’t be afraid to wander, don’t be afraid to get lost. Both situations can lead to some very beautiful things.

Those Who Wander