Being a native of the Philadelphia region, I kind of tell it like it is. This travel log is not going to be a fancy-schmancy, edited for content, Hallmark movie of a story. This log is going to be a real account of real travel: full of blood, drugs, sex, and violence. As well as bad stuff too. There might be some things you do not want to read, some opinions you do not like, some stories that will offend you. And, honestly, sincerely, from the bottom of my beating heart, let me share with you a song that encapsulates my feelings. Life is a contact sport; the more insular you live it, the smaller your world view will be. What you find offensive, deeply meditate on why.
I am reminded of a story: a young American man was traveling through Korea, where he met a native. They got friendly, and the young American asked the Korean if they really ate dog in his country. The Korean replied that in some places, they still did. The American kind of chuckled and let slip that he thought it was barbaric. The Korean calmly asked if it was still the custom in the United States to put their elders in retirement homes surrounded by strangers instead of having their children take care of them, letting them usually die alone. The aghast American nodded. The Korean replied, “In my culture, that is barbaric.”
The more I traveled, the more I realized that perspectives matter. Westerner, Easterner, Northerner, and Southerner; whether old or young, vanquisher or vanquished, we live in a time where all of us can share our stories. The more varied the stories one encounters, the closer the overall truth. The more we talk, and more importantly, the more we listen, the more we realize that we are not really that different.
Before I left on this year-long voyage, I wrote myself a letter, meant to be opened when I returned. It covered various things, such as my fears, my longings, and the like. However, even after the thousands of miles I had traveled, the hundreds of people I met, and the millions of experiences I had, reading the very last line of that letter was the best of it all. And I do sincerely wish it for you. It said, ‘Keep your mind and your heart open.’
