Don’t Travel to go Soul Searching

There seems to be a common themes in the media, from movies to advertisements, that your soul searching should be done somewhere exotic, hard to get to, or with a significant spiritual history. Specifically I’m thinking of the people who seem to think that to attain enlightenment or to find themselves they need to travel to places like the Angkor Wat or the remote Canadian wilderness, maybe to the top of a mountain or something.

I don’t know where they’ve gotten this idea, but whoever is perpetuating it needs to stop. They seem to have convinced a great deal of people that they’re going to find their soul hidden under a rock somewhere.

I’m not totally convinced that the people who travel to soul search are actually searching for themselves. They know who they are, but are perhaps unhappy with the conclusion they’ve come to. They want to know what they’re capable of, what direction is their life heading in. They’re not looking for who they are, they’re looking for who they could become, and I think a lot of them are scared that the answer will be ‘not much’.

Don’t get me wrong, personal growth is always a worthwhile goal. You should definitely travel as part of that goal of improvement, go to some amazing places and have amazing experiences while you are looking for those answers.

What you shouldn’t do is have a whole trip to Cambodia to find the meaning of life, the universe, and everything. Don’t go seeking answers.

You will not find them.

What you will find is either disappointment from a fruitless journey, or worse, someone who wants to take advantage of your need for answers and a sense of belonging.

It’s a bit of a downer, I know. I’m afraid I can’t tell you where or when you will begin to feel like you know who you are or what you’re capable of. Only you can answer those questions, and you should run from anyone who tries to answer them for you. Whether they’re someone within your community or someone you met on an exotic spiritual retreat. They don’t have your best interest at heart.

Not to worry though, gentle reader. You can and will find your answers. In the meantime go have your adventures (in a Covid safe way), and take in as much of your world as you can. I believe in you!