Disclaimer: all photos courtesy of The Whee.
The Whee has finally returned to the nest after two whirlwind weeks of being out and about; first in Seattle with her sister and then at church camp. She came home hoarse, almost voiceless. When I told her she sounded like Marlene Dietrich, she said, "I have no idea who that is, but if you know them I'm sure it's an old person." Whippersnapper. Old person, my ***. Wait till she has to change my diapers.
The Whee will be guest blogging about her Seattle travels this week. I can't do it since I have no idea what most of the pictures are, where they were taken, or even why, in some cases. I do know that it was a fabulous experience, she got to spend quality time with her sister, and she saw and did things that will stay with her all her life. And that she needs to close her mouth while she's taking pictures.
I can't begin to fully express the value of travel and seeing new things (but you know I'm going to try, don't you). Just a few of the good things, the important things, the valuable things of seeing new parts of the world:
1. You try new foods. This is good practice in case you are ever a guest in a foreign country and are offered a bowl of something that squirms. The Whee ate some fiddlehead ferns. I applaud her for being open to new experiences. She said it was yucky.
2. Your mother can live vicariously through your trips. Since there are a gazillion places to go in the world, and I won't live long enough to visit them all personally, vicarious travel gets me farther.
3. You become more aware of how other people live. And dress. Not everyone wears camo and workboots the same way...
4. You try new foods. The Whee said this bowl of clam chowder was life changing. "Life-changing" is her sister's term for anything really good. In this case, it really was life-changing. It changed The Whee from starving tween to a tween with a full belly who thinks clams should be served at every meal.
5. You begin to understand that 'alien' is a relative term. Especially if the alien looks like one of your cousins.
6. You see a different side of the people you travel with. And then wish you hadn't. And then you promise each other that "what happens in Seattle, stays in Seattle."
7. You begin to see how we're all connected, and dependent upon and responsible for one another. Your universe gets a little bigger.
8. And best of all, you soak in beauty. That's an added value that can't be beat. We can all use a little beauty each day as we pass through this world.
Happy Trails, and may your adventures be as big as all outdoors!
4 comments:
Looks like she's following in her mom's footsteps!
Might be hard to get fresh clams in Oklahoma
Nice job, Whee!
That is excellent for Whee. I just got back from England (12 days by myself) and it was amazing. I can't stress how much I love to travel, but this experience brought me to a whole new level.
#7 is was the most important thing I learned about this trip. I was alone and it was such a conversation starter. I saw the humanity of people by just taking me in to their groups. I even met a great couple from Seattle.
And I ate stuff that I would never eat at home. That's just a basic rule of thumb unless you are starving in Munich and all the restaurants are closed on a Sunday, except for McDonalds.
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