“Life is either a daring adventure or nothing at all.”- Helen Keller
Last week started a whole new adventure for my wonderful beau and me. We began a courtship. Kind of an old fashioned word, but a concept that, I believe, is filled with wisdom. Now lets be clear- this isn’t for every couple at any time. But for us, it works. Basically, we want to ask hard questions up front and make sure we are on the same page every step into the future. That is scary, and very forward, but to me it is much more my speed than just “winging it” in a relationship.
We are seeing if we can be co-adventurers in life together, so what better way to start than by talking about travel and adventuring together around the world. Ironically, it seemed like a safe, light topic. It was great fun, but not so light as might be expected. We reflected on many aspects of travel and I have to be honest, it was very interesting to think about how a life partner would fit into my globe-trotting. Being 30 years old and never having had a serious relationship before, I have never had to plan a trip with a significant other. I have traveled with family and a few select friends but by and large my travel has been by myself. I am fiercely independent and more than a little headstrong. Thinking about planning travel with a partner is completely new. How do we decide where to go? (Maybe the hat will stick around forever to give us guidance). 
But where to go is not nearly as ground breaking as how to go. Do we travel well together? Does going somewhere together mean we have to spend every waking moment together (can I please poop in peace?!) or do we schedule solo time? I am an introvert who loves her camera, I love spending time with people (especially my boo) but I also love exploring on my own. When I went to Ireland for a month on my own I adored wandering about old buildings, libraries, fields and streets at my own pace, with no one telling me “hurry up” or sighing as I took my 100th picture from the 10th angle of that one wall of an old building. Please don’t get me wrong- I can’t wait to travel with the man I love, hear his bad dad jokes about every sight we go see, taste food and wine with him and come back to the hotel and… uh… cuddle. As much as I loved my solitude in Dublin, I also missed the companionship and joy of someone to share things with. Laughing by yourself at a funny sign just isn’t as fun. I certainly don’t want to be one of those couples that goes on parallel vacations (you know, they go to London and he goes to the pubs and sporting events and she hits the spas and the mall and they see each other for like 3 minutes a day until they get back on a plane).
We talked about the pros and cons of togetherness and alone time at dinner and I was struck by how similarly we viewed things and how easily I could picture us going places together. It was great. We even went on a little mini culinary world tour- dinner at the Ramen house and then walking hand in hand under twinkle lights to the little French bakery for desert. At the end of the day we share a love of experiences that keep us humble and grateful. I believe that our journey has just begun and that is exciting.
So, to my love and my friend, my rock and my laughter, my dear – thank you for traveling on this grand adventure with me.
Intentional Vulnerability 