A Bittersweet Farewell | From ETM

"Today marks the first day of the rest of your lives," is something that - ironically - we never heard at our graduation ceremony. But today does mark something different - the first day of a year of travels, the first day of the mysterious "Lifestyle" section, but the last day on the maple syrup-soaked grounds of Canada.

Travelling is something we all dream of doing, and I am incredibly privileged to have this opportunity. But right now, at this very moment as I sit waiting for my flight to board, I am THIS close to freaking out, turning around and going home to play with my dog. I don't know what lies ahead. I've left friends, family and a potential "start to my future" behind to chase...what? The world? The places I will go are words that escape my mouth at this point, just a dream. But as soon as I step on the plane that dream becomes a reality as I chase summer around the world for a year, as well as adventure and, well, the unknown. But none of us know what we will face in the next year. We're all leading a different adventure - the only difference is that sometimes when we're faced with travel we're forced to look at everything with new eyes and a fresh perspective - and it's something we rarely do in our everyday lives. We're all guilty about it. So if you're looking at the year ahead, wishing you could escape, ESCAPE. Look at the city you've just returned to, look at your city you're still in, and really let it all soak in. What if you were travelling to where you currently are? You would be stoked if you weren't from there. Every there is a here and every here is a there.

But I'm about to board. Bye, Canada. You've been swell. And to all you readers out there, if you feel like your "fresh perspective" technique isn't working, come meet me. I'm just a message and/or plane ticket away.