Travel changes us.

It’s a great privilege to be able to see and experience new parts of the world through travel. One I only knew through the pages of books when I was young. My grandma Shirley instilled in me a voracious love of reading and of travel. Grandma had never traveled other than from her home in Illinois to her new home in Florida as a young mom. But she made me see the possibilities out there in the world through books. New cultures and places, new languages and foods, incredible vistas of sea and mountains. A whole world to explore that felt so far away yet so full of possibility.

I took my first flight when I was eighteen years old on my senior trip to Mexico.  I had worked all year as the trip coordinator and managed the trip for my classmates in exchange for a paid trip for myself. I felt so proud when I boarded the flight and set off on that adventure. In college, school was covered by scholarships but I worked two jobs to pay for a spring break trip with friends. When Dave and I were dating, I shared with him my dream of traveling to Paris. He surprised me that first Christmas together with tickets to the City of Lights and I cried in disbelief. I called my Grandma excitedly to let her know I would see the Eiffel Tower in person. Dave proposed there and it was all more magical than I could describe.

As the years have gone on, Dave and I have skimped and saved and road tripped and flown all over the US and to many places abroad. We both have a heart for traveling and make it a priority to do so with our kids (even when they were itty bitty and the road trips and long flights seemed ludicrous, we did it anyway).

Now, we are fiercely loyal to one airline (to earn miles), use the mileage plus shopping browser on the computer, and ensure we have the most efficient-at-earning-miles credit card. We check our mileage balance the way some people check their stock market portfolio. When it’s high enough to book tickets for seven, we book the tickets.

The sheer act of getting out of our comfort zone, forces each of us to be present and aware of the dance of life happening around us, one we often miss at home, distracted by all-the-things.

On this past trip, we made so many memories and also practiced patience, adaptability and flexibility during long travel days.

A few stories come to mind about what my kids taught me this time around…

Just yesterday, I watched as Luke made friends with kids from different countries, who spoke different languages, as we waited out a flight delay. They sat on the windowsill and chatted about where they’re from and played on the small airport playground, their laughter a melody that carried through the terminal. Little ones can teach us a lot about being open to new connections and new people.

When we first arrived in Zurich, our first time in this new city, we went to board a train and Ben and Nate boarded first, the rest of us lagging slightly behind (mostly due to Luke’s frequent stops to make snowballs on the walk over). When we ran to enter the train, the doors closed. I pounded on the button to open them, looking through the glass at two of my kids, and watched as the train pulled away - Ben and Nate inside, the rest of us still on the platform. Because they are brilliant travelers and are level-headed through experience, they calmly decided to get off at the next station and wait for us. It took thirty minutes for the next train to arrive but I knew they were together, on alert with their belongings, and patient. All was well, and they laughed at me when I hugged them tightly and told them how proud I was of them. Travel isn’t easy and you don’t become a seasoned traveler overnight, but the collective experience serves a purpose in teaching problem-solving skills so that you can think clearly when faced with a new dilemma in a foreign place.

I love the independence and sense of freedom my kids find in the town we have visited many times (seventeen times by last count). On our last evening, as we were packing up and preparing for an early train departure the next morning, Sylvie asked if she could walk to a friend’s store to buy a purse she had her eye on. We agreed and called our friend to let her know Sylvie was on her way. She walked over by herself, with her souvenir spending money (each of the kids received 20 euro for Christmas to spend as they wished) and bought the purse. It doesn’t sound like a big feat, but when you’re thirteen, and you have an opportunity to be independent and confident, it’s a life skill that I believe will serve you well. She carried that purse proudly the rest of the trip.  Travel reminds us that we are capable of more than we realize and these experiences reinforce our self-confidence.

And, when we arrived at the adorable little ski town where we would spend a few days, we had our skis and boots sized a day early to prevent a rushed frenzy before the kid’s ski school the next morning. Charlotte decided that she wanted to try on her own on the small slope in town before her day with an instructor. She fell multiple times and yet, she refused to give up. She just got up, asked Dave what she did wrong (he’s a really good skier!) and tried again. Her determination paid off and in two days time, she was skiing alongside her dad and brothers on red runs (while Sylvie, Luke and I enjoyed hot chocolate and ice skating safely at the foot of the mountain). She reminded me that facing new situations, regardless of being a little afraid, teaches resilience.

I love the way traveling together helps my kids see the world through a lens of compassion, kindness, patience, resilience and love. Travel changes us and I’m back home today feeling immensely grateful that despite all the hard stuff happening in the world, we got to experience some of the good, together.

The sleepy, sweet town of Wengen, Switzerland 🇨🇭