Self-Discovery: Episode 3

It has been 92 days since I left Dallas and 113 days since I was furloughed. I have traveled some 15,000 odd miles through 23 states. I’ve been “home” for about 3 weeks now. (Don't ask me why it's in quotations, that's for a whole other segment...) I have been procrastinating writing this article because I have been contemplating the question I wanted to answer. What is self-discovery and how do you self-discover? My journey has tested me and challenged me more in these three months than the past three years.

I thought that travel, pushing my physical limits, lots of sunshine and fresh air, a hammock, and a pair of chacos would magically make me feel like a new person. It did! For like 2 and a half minutes. As soon as I came down from that mountain (no pun intended), I went right back to feeling like I did before. I wanted to be “cured” from my issues. I wanted to be inspired and happy and high on life! But I can’t accomplish that without changing my mindset.

I guess the answer to the question is that there is no point of self-discovery, or as Abraham Maslow would say: “self-actualization.” Maslow created the Hierarchy of Needs as a theory of human motivation. Ideally, I think that his theory is acceptable. Unfortunately, ideals and theories rarely work out the way they’re intended. I’m a very black and white person, the older I get the more I realize that there is a lot more grey area than anyone would like to admit. I have come to believe that self-discovery is something that you are always working towards. I also think that your path can change based on the seasons of your life. The important part is how you decide to respond when life takes a different turn.

Travel has been a beneficial tool in helping me prepare to be flexible in life. I think that if I would have taken this trip when I had been, for lack of a better term, happier, I would have missed out on some existential feelings. You don’t always have to wait for perfect timing to do something or learn something. My heart and mind are open to change and priming. In order to find what you’re looking for, you have to be open to the idea that it might not be what you thought. I believe that God has something out there for each of us that is more beautiful and exciting than we can imagine for ourselves.

P.S.

If you want to learn more about Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs, check out this crash course: https://youtu.be/L0PKWTta7lU