What is Adventure Anyway?
After years of seeking a definition for adventure, here are my thoughts…
I used to think travel and adventurousness went hand in hand. That, and physically active pursuits like paragliding or climbing 14ers. I still believe that, but that's only one part of a rather dynamic spectrum. I think it's all dependent on the person and what it is, exactly, that's meant to challenge their unique lifestyle.
For example, some only know travel and vagabonding and life on the road. So to them, are they just more adventurous than the average person, or do they keep moving because it's their version of a comfort zone? With the greater fear being to settle somewhere for the long term? Seeing the same people day after day?
Then there are those who have never traveled and seen beyond their community, yet are challenging themselves every day to go out, stand up for causes they believe in even if it's against the grain of their peers, engage in hard conversations, and forge into actions that make their comfort zone quiver. That sounds adventurous to me.
And for the battered soul going through deep grief, isn't it adventurous just to get out of bed and face the day? Or perhaps even braver to allow themselves to lay in bed for a day, putting a pause on society's endless noise, and choosing to sit quietly and face the range of emotions they could more easily muffle and avoid? Being adventurous by means of facing messy feelings and painful thoughts?
Maybe adventure, then, is too aloof to truly define, but an invisible presence, a call to arms, a deep inner voice, a firmly rooted power, inviting us all to be as fully present, as fully in our bodies, and as fully reaching beyond ourselves to see and know and hear and taste all the things that we have yet to sample. To strive, to thrive, to be quiet and listen when it's easier to yell, and to roar when we'd rather hide under a bush.
We can all be adventurous. We are all inherently adventurous. And we will continue to be as adventurous as we could possibly be with small choices we make every day. It's not about comparison to others. It's about what feels challenging, yet right, to you in your life.
Small steps can become big leaps
What would feel amazing to pursue? Learning the ukulele? Starting a business? Wearing patent leather red pumps? Auditioning for a play? Choosing not to go out on the town? Taking a different route to work? Saying hi to that barista with the dreamy eyes? Taking the leap on a new career path? Going to the gym after years of avoidance? Hiring a babysitter to make space for yourself? Letting go of trying to fix the problems of family members who never asked for your help?
Can you imagine what might change in your life if you took tiny, incremental actions (or intentional inactions), that moved you on a path to greater fulfillment? Perhaps taking the heart-pumping step that requires courage is what helps you feel more inner peace and ease in the long run.
In fact, yes, the steps that feel hard and scary that align with your desires, are the very ones that help your life feel more peaceful and easy.
Imagine if you had the bravery to wholeheartedly trust that life can and will get better for you, no matter what noisy doubts say otherwise. And that you can have this, not by hustling so hard you're banging your head on every wall, but by making tiny, squeal-worthy, brave steps, and allowing the walls to fall away.
