My Mama Said So
My mom was never a trendy woman. She rocked baggy soccer t-shirts and leggings on most days. She chose comfort over style 100% of the time. She never bought anything nice for herself, always choosing to buy things for other people instead. Not only was she not fashionably trendy, she was also never up to date with the new street sayings. She never called my dad "bae" (which for those of you who don't know, actually means "bye" in Icelandic and "poop" in Danish), she never said YOLO when she wanted to eat something she knew was bad for her, and she certainly never said "lit" or "turnt up" when something was exciting. She wasn't in the know with the inspirational quotes circling around social media, so when she said "Do what you want to do and don't worry about what other people think”, it was real. It may have been cliché advice, but not when it came from her.
During her sickness, she taught me that it shouldn’t take something big and extraordinary to bring happiness into your life. She taught me that you need to cherish the little things that happen daily. To find joy in the every day. But contrary to that, she also taught me that you absolutely need to go after your passions. I’ve said it before, and I’ll say it again, life is damn short. Sometimes you think about it and you’re like “actually, life is pretty long”, but it’s not the amount of years you’ll be living, it’s how you’re living.
Say you live for 100 years - sure that sounds long in theory. Especially if you’re living in the mundane insanity of daily routine, unhappy with your every day. But living 100 years and never chasing that thing that sets your soul on fire? Sounds like life is going to feel real short when that regret rolls in at the end of the 100 years.
Don’t waste time. Don’t put it off.
So on that note… BAAAI! 👋 Kev and I are taking off. FOR THREE WHOLE MONTHS.
I’ve been waiting so long to announce this, it’s legit been a daily struggle not to climb up the figurative social media mountain and scream it at the top of my lungs. We’re ✌ ing out and going on an adventure for NINETY DAYS! I get to be attached to his hip for a whole quarter of the year and he’s going to be SO sick of me by the end of it, and I COULDN’T BE MORE EXCITED!
But I’m not just bragging to brag (ok, maybe a little), but there’s a purpose, I swear! My point is, it’s never too late to do what you want to do. If I could take you by the shoulders and yell this at you, I would, but for now I’ll just have to do it through the screen: DON’T MAKE EXCUSES. JUST GO DO IT. No matter what it is (whether it’s travel related or not).
We’re nearing 30 and the look people give us when we tell them we’re leaving for 3 months, is this look of “are you sure you wanna do that, don’t you have life and responsibilities and bills and adult things to take are of” kind of look. Yes to all of that, but if not now, then when? Sure, it may have been easier, responsibility-wise, if we had done it in our early twenties, but it’s not like we can turn back time. So what’s the next best thing? Right NOW.
When Kevin and I were just Kevin, and Aimee, we both had a burning desire to dedicate a bunch of time in our lives to exploring the world. But when Kevin, and Aimee, became Kevin and Aimee, that fiery passion just burned a whole hella lot stronger. And then all it took was a “Hey babe, you wanna go travel for three months?”. Umm YES PLEASE.
Now, we cooould worry about jobs and living arrangements, bills, Rocky, etc, etc, etc, OR we could handle it like the adults we are, organize the shit out of everything and then hop on a plane and go do what we’ve been dreaming of doing. That to me, sounds like a much better plan.
Because you know what? People will judge you no matter what you do. So you might as well make it worth the gossip and the judgement. Plus, my Mama told me to go do what I want to do and not to worry about what other people think. And she was a pretty wise woman, so my advice to you is to listen to her too.
And if you’re sitting there being like “Well Aimee, you don’t have kids. And Aimee, I don’t have the money. Aimee, I like my job”. Well, figure it out. Bring your kids, make a savings plan, find a similar job that’s location independent, ask for a leave of absence, do something. But don’t sit around and make excuses you’re not willing to overcome. If there’s a will, there’s a way.
PS. Keep an eye out for all our adventure updates! We'll be leaving Boxing Day 2017 for 3 months in South East Asia: Bali*, Philippines, Singapore, Malaysia, Cambodia and Vietnam! And we'll be finishing it off with some jet lag recovery in Myrtle Beach, South Carolina.
*Bali is a maybe right now - Mount Agung is currently erupting and we're working on changing our travel plans so the first leg of our trip is still up in the air! Stay tuned.