One year ago today, I began an open ended adventure. I scrubbed the walls of my soon to be sold home and drove away with my partner, daughters and dog with the caravan in tow.
I had just started my first year of full-time online study, and was setting off to begin my adventure.
Having reflected on all that I have experienced over the past year, I have compiled a list of 10 things that travelling did for me and my study.
- Comfort Zone: If I’m too comfortable I begin to slack-off. During my travel I was pushed beyond my comfort zone which made me that little bit more brave and ready for anything life could throw at me. This translated into my assessments when I was given an unknown topic – diving into the unknown yielded new results.
- New Eyes: Every time we moved onto the next destination I would explore a new area and take in all of the details. Keeping my surroundings fresh made me happy.
- Flexible: Studying online is completely flexible, which is perfect for me since days are lost on the road or making the most of my adventure. I could get ahead of my study when the rain set in and revise when it suited me.
- Outside of self: It’s easy to put yourself at the centre of your own personal universe. However travel shakes this out of you and lets you look at the world from an outside point of view. This skill translated into critiquing my own assessments with a different view.
- Inspiration: The little things I noticed that were so inspiring: hand writing on a letter box in Nowra, a black cockatoo feather in Bundaberg, the colour palette of the playground in Stuarts Point. These all fed into my assessments in 2016.
- Meet people: Between house-sitting and caravan parks, I met so many people that offered a different insight into seeing or living. And I would not have talked to these people if it weren’t for my travels.
- More outside time: Good-bye walls and floors and hello to the great outdoors! From early till late I spent so much time outside and felt great from it.
- Save money: Over 70 percent of the year was spent house-sitting, so other than caravan fees and petrol, I didn’t have to worry about expenses. This freed up my time as I would have otherwise been working, leaving more time for study and family.
- Resourcefulness: Despite trying to find a place to finish an essay in peace, having limited internet access or the limited art materials at the local newsagent; I now know I can get through any assessment literally anywhere and anytime.
- Spend time with my family: I got to have three meals most days with my two children and partner, which meant I didn’t miss out on connecting or getting to experience new places with them.
