This is a time when it feels that there is nothing. Isolation lingers and a feeling of emptiness takes up a strange abundance of space. Spontaneity and adventure feel as far away as big parties or Broadway shows. But the one thing that remains is what has been there all along. What was there in times way before you and should remain for eons after. The evidence of all life, growth and development. The thing most untouched and magnificent, yet most in danger in this complicated world. The outdoors.
Before this year, nature was a fascination. A beautiful thing we appreciated in passing. We enjoyed nature, but we weren't even close to fully appreciating it. It wasn't until the first night sleeping in a tent, living a life free of all outside influence (the ever-mind-boggling news, oppressive grey skyscrapers, the drawings of Tiktok and Instagram) did we begin to understand it.
Traveling is something most long for. An opportunity to see the world. To see natural beauty and learn about different cultures. However, travel and exploring should never be confused. Before this fall, when traveling, we were simply going to a different location to live an extension of our own lives. It is only when you are free of all influence, when the only thing you recognize is the tent in which you sleep, can you truly explore the unknown. That is when you can really understand what a different part of the world is like. Seeing a place in its raw form, its full story, without intertwining your own with it.
And for us, when we experienced that whole story, the natural world in all of its majesty, we realized two things.
We found somewhere where you feel a sense of a world much larger than yourselves, a refuge where your problems can melt away.
Mountains, the stars, rivers, plains, the ocean. It is all so vast and so special and so worth all of our efforts to save. As young adults coming of age in a climate crisis much greater than what many of us are willing to accept, we have a responsibility to devote as much of ourselves as possible to saving this beautiful planet.
September 15th marked a historical point in both our lives. It was a date beginning a journey neither of us had ever come close to experiencing before. Sleeping in a tent, living out of a backpack, the date of your next shower, unknown. It marked a time when all that was certain was no more and the only place to go was forward, attempting to understand a different lifestyle. It didn’t take long for this aberrant world to become home. To say the least, anyone and I mean ANYONE can camp and explore the world. Even in your own backyard you will be fascinated by the things you never stopped to recognize.
We hope this blog sparks a light inside you to take a moment to appreciate what you can. Right here and right now. Put down pinterest and take a step forward… (specifically outdoors). Consider this your invitation to join us on a journey and to inspire us by creating a path of your own.
Nature is calling,
Chicks astray
Great introduction. I look forward to the next post.
Go explore the world, chicks!🤠