In less than a week, I’ll be flying to China again. I’ve written a bit about China here and there in previous posts, and included it in my bio on this site. This time, just as I told others when I left, I’m coming with my husband. Sometimes you don’t know what exactly you want to do, or how to accomplish what you want to do but taking a first step or a few steps will unfold a bit of magic that leads you to your goal. Visualize what you can and let the details fill in over time. I believe that’s how my next trip is happening. I started to believe my husband could be the one when he matched a bit of my craziness after I asked him if he’d go to China with me, and he said yes. At the time he was still my boyfriend and a trip this large might seem unwise to be the first to start planning together. But here we are!
We’ve already had no short of adventures in various forms, including getting a motorcycle a few weeks ago, and using said motorcycle for various trips including going to get vaccinations before travelling!
Now, why did I go to China seven years ago? I believe there was an innate longing that took me time to recognize. It was a longing to travel and see something more of the world. It was a longing to learn how people lived in another culture, and to meet others so like and so different from me at the same time. It was a longing to see what I could do away from everyone who loved and supported me. It was a longing to have an adventure. It was a longing to spur new ideas and creativity that would provide fodder for writing and my future life. It was a longing to grow through challenging experiences. It was a longing to choose a path not as beaten and worn as others nearby.
As I’ll be travelling again to new areas in China I’ve never been, and to one I lived in for a time, my mind wanders to what I remember and have yet to tell, and to wonder what I’ll yet experience. Travel poems are in abundance and if you’ve never had an ounce of wanderlust in your life, reading some may change your desires. Here are a few examples, the second of which, by Du Fu, sums up what I may expect to feel next week. It so powerfully aligned with my mind, that I started to cry reading it through. And here is one of my own penned for this occasion:
Travel Poems in my Heart by Aubri Wilson Never did I ever think Something was born inside And grew with me each night But in a new continent In the east Where I remember Rice paddies and a buffalo "Mr. Hello" with mung bean ice cream And karst mountains Motorcycle taxis and scaffolding Golden temples and majestic pagodas and towers Dumplings and hot pot and chrysanthemum tea Markets with lychee and longan and rambutan And bok choy and choy sum and garlic scapes Students who studied long but found time to laugh Motorized rickshaws and ancient hutongs A palace and museums of relics from time unknown People with curious looks and friendly smiles Who fed me with their own chopsticks In that land in the east I discovered there Travel poems in my heart Which made me long To remember and return To reunite with at least a few Friends I made years ago And with a tongue and country Which welcomed me and my heart In a strange way I didn't know
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