But I especially love flying. And pretty much everything about it. From planning a trip to booking a window seat. From arriving at the airport to finally getting to my destination.
Why?
Because flying and traveling is one the times in my life where I can walk out of my daily routine and experience something so different. I walk away from all the "I should be doing [fill in this blank]" and into a different mindset.
Traveling changes my perspective.
Traveling changes my perspective.
Why's that?
Flying forces me to travel light. You can't take the kitchen sink. You have to think about the weight of your luggage. You have to plan what goes in it. Often, very carefully.
For me, this isn't how I operate everyday. Maybe it should be.
But that's the thing. Because I recently flew to a photography conference in San Antonio and to study headshot photography with Peter Hurley in NYC, traveling has gotten me thinking.
1) I tend to overpack, both for traveling and in life.
Even with weight restrictions, I found myself saying, "I might need this..." and tossed it in the suitcase. But when I started packing up at the hotel to come back, I saw how much I didn't actually need and could have done without.
Dragging overloaded suitcases through the airport and down the street isn't fun.
Once home, I looked around. Yep, there's a lot I don't need and can do without.
I'm going to pull out The Life-Changing Magic Art of Tidying Up and read it again and de-clutter my life!
2) Flying really does give me a chance to look at the big picture.
I am fascinated with staring out of the plane window. I love seeing the clouds, the earth, the water. All of it.
As we take off, cars and trucks, that seem so big in life here on the ground, start receding. As do houses, buildings, and people.
You can see how the landscape changes, how lakes and rivers have carved the land, how clouds create shadows below.
It's amazing.
It puts life in perspective for me.
It can be raining on the ground, but in minutes, we're in bright, sunny skies.
Problems that seem huge in my life seem so much smaller from above.
Flying gives me time to think and I'm glad I have that time. I can't wait for my next trip!
3) Getting to a my destination gives me an opportunity to experience something new!
Whether it's different foods, or culture, or just different people, I get to learn and have interesting experiences. That's exciting to me!
It broadens my understanding of others and I can make new friends! How cool is that?
So while I'm looking forward to my next trip, I want to apply what I've learned here at home.
1) I need to fly lean. Why have so much stuff around if I don't need it? I'm going to keep the things related to my passions and let the past go. I don't want to be weighed down with overpacked suitcases in my life.
2) Even if a problem seems big or boring to me, my perspective of it needs to change. What if I take an issue and look at it from several different perspectives? Just as getting above the cloud cover allows me to see the sun or stars in the sky, taking time to think about what's going on in my life will help me see that there's a much bigger picture. God's in control and always see the big picture. Sometimes I forget that. He's got my best interest in the long-run. I need to remember that.
3) Traveling to other places or countries helps me be more understanding. Meeting other people with different customs or ways of doing things in so interesting. It keeps me learning!
So, I'm going to look forward to my next trip while looking at my life through a different lens for a while. What do I really need in my life and what can I let go?
It's a journey I'm excited about!
Come join me!
What lessons have you learned from traveling? If you could go anywhere, where
TWEETABLE:
How Traveling Changes my Perspective (click to tweet)
For me, this isn't how I operate everyday. Maybe it should be.
But that's the thing. Because I recently flew to a photography conference in San Antonio and to study headshot photography with Peter Hurley in NYC, traveling has gotten me thinking.
1) I tend to overpack, both for traveling and in life.
Even with weight restrictions, I found myself saying, "I might need this..." and tossed it in the suitcase. But when I started packing up at the hotel to come back, I saw how much I didn't actually need and could have done without.
Dragging overloaded suitcases through the airport and down the street isn't fun.
Once home, I looked around. Yep, there's a lot I don't need and can do without.
I'm going to pull out The Life-Changing Magic Art of Tidying Up and read it again and de-clutter my life!
2) Flying really does give me a chance to look at the big picture. I am fascinated with staring out of the plane window. I love seeing the clouds, the earth, the water. All of it.
As we take off, cars and trucks, that seem so big in life here on the ground, start receding. As do houses, buildings, and people.
You can see how the landscape changes, how lakes and rivers have carved the land, how clouds create shadows below.
It's amazing.
It puts life in perspective for me.
It can be raining on the ground, but in minutes, we're in bright, sunny skies.
Problems that seem huge in my life seem so much smaller from above.
Flying gives me time to think and I'm glad I have that time. I can't wait for my next trip!
3) Getting to a my destination gives me an opportunity to experience something new! Whether it's different foods, or culture, or just different people, I get to learn and have interesting experiences. That's exciting to me!
It broadens my understanding of others and I can make new friends! How cool is that?
So while I'm looking forward to my next trip, I want to apply what I've learned here at home.
1) I need to fly lean. Why have so much stuff around if I don't need it? I'm going to keep the things related to my passions and let the past go. I don't want to be weighed down with overpacked suitcases in my life.
2) Even if a problem seems big or boring to me, my perspective of it needs to change. What if I take an issue and look at it from several different perspectives? Just as getting above the cloud cover allows me to see the sun or stars in the sky, taking time to think about what's going on in my life will help me see that there's a much bigger picture. God's in control and always see the big picture. Sometimes I forget that. He's got my best interest in the long-run. I need to remember that.
3) Traveling to other places or countries helps me be more understanding. Meeting other people with different customs or ways of doing things in so interesting. It keeps me learning!
So, I'm going to look forward to my next trip while looking at my life through a different lens for a while. What do I really need in my life and what can I let go?
It's a journey I'm excited about!
Come join me!
What lessons have you learned from traveling? If you could go anywhere, where
would that be?
TWEETABLE:
How Traveling Changes my Perspective (click to tweet)
Blogs I join:
Ha I'm grinning as I'm reading this thinking maybe you should have joined a certain person on his trip to Bangkok and you could have tested out your new lean approach to travelling lighter - oh we could chat about this for hours, the fun we would have had! I love this post Mary, I definitely am trying to look at things from a new perspective, not just judge the world I find myself living in based on my upbringing and what I perceive to be right or wrong!
ReplyDeleteJ x
Trust me Wren, I wanted to come with him so badly and hang out with you!
DeleteBut I sent presents with him for you!!! Check PM on Instagram. 😀😀
You are so gorgeous! A massive thank you - speak soon.
ReplyDeleteWren x
What great lessons from traveling! I'm a notorious over-packer!
ReplyDeleteThank you for joining this week's party at http://image-in-ing.blogspot.com/2017/05/down-to-jordan-river.html
ReplyDelete