How Traveling Makes You More Childlike

I took this picture of my niece while we were at a café. She was walking around and saw this other little girl and they immediately started hugging, kissing, and being super nice to each other in the way that toddlers do and it got me to thinking about human behavior and how traveling can help us become more like them. These two little girls had absolutely no problem with associating with each other and it was an innocent moment of complete happiness.

Traveling helps me to be more like these two little girls. When I travel, I get to see other people and how they live and it helps me to appreciate them for who they are and not focus on the color of their skin. We often hear the phrase, “broaden your horizons” but if you really think about that phrase, it is so true.

If you don’t get out of your comfort zone and see things that are different than what you are accustomed to, you tend to only be comfortable with people that look and/or act like you.  But if you travel past the horizons of your contentment, you can be more like these little girls and embrace others without focusing on the differences, but focus on the beauty they have to offer.

I’m not sure at what age we start poisoning our children with noticing the differences of people and using that to keep us at bay but it doesn’t take long for that mindset to take root. It’s a shame that we all can’t be like my niece and her little friend and just embrace without judging and without pretense. Traveling to places where people don’t look like you can totally change the learned behavior our society puts on us.

Traveling can help all of us to see how our lives and the lives of others usually have the same goal even though the way it is presented may be different. For the most part everyone wants to be loved, have shelter, be educated, have friends, and be able to make a living. We are all more alike than we are different so keep the innocence inside of yourself…Travel.