Why I Decided To Take A Gap Year And Travel The World..

I was a cheerleader for 13 years of my life. I thought that I was going to be doing something to do with cheerleading for the rest of my life. Whether it was coaching, actually cheering again for a team, or working on staff of a top cheerleading company. It was my dream. So once I moved to Texas in 2012, I decided to try out for Universal Cheerleaders Association (UCA) staff. It was my dream to make it, and I worked for months improving my skills. So, you could imagine that I was very crushed when I found out that I did not make it. 

I was so lost when I found out that I didn't make it, because I didn't know what my dream was anymore. And for me, life is not complete unless you have a dream to reach for. So I spent about 2 months trying to decide if that really was my dream. In the end, I decided it was. So, I spent that Summer and Fall practicing my skills again. Until one day, I stopped loving it. And all that was going through my head was "Dream a new dream".

And so, that's exactly what I started to do..

By this time it was November of 2013 and I was getting ready to board my flight back to New York for Thanksgiving, when it hit me. I love traveling. I love getting on a plane and flying to somewhere. I even like doing that on my own better that with others. Even if it was just going back to NYC, I still loved the happiness that getting on a plane gave me. And I knew that it wasn't just the excitement of getting to see my family and friends again. Because even on the flight back to Texas, that same love and happiness was still there.

As soon as I got home that Thanksgiving, I started to read travel blogs every now and then, just dreaming of a life of travel. Then, I started getting more interested in different countries around the world. I would spend hours and hours a day in bookstores reading about a bunch of different countries and cities, just thinking about where I would want to go if I were to travel.

It was around May of 2014 when I decided that I could do this. I could save every penny I have and I can go wherever I want. I didn't have to just sit back and read about others living the same dream as me. I was already working full time, so I knew I could save the money. Instead of buying new clothes and make-up and pointless material things, I decided not to touch a penny of my money if I didn't have to.

I didn't know exactly where to start, but I knew what my heart was dying to see. I wanted to see the Northern Lights so badly. I became obsessed with seeing them. Now at least once a week I would spend hours researching the best times and places to see the Northern Lights. Then I decided that in August, I would make my dream a reality. I was going to go to Norway for a week and see the Northern Lights and all of Norway's wonderful beauty. I even learned how to speak a bit of Norwegian!

But sometimes, things don't go exactly as we plan. The day before I was about to book my flight to Norway, I received devastating news about the death of a friend back in New York. So, instead of booking my ticket to Norway, I booked my ticket back home to NYC and flew out the next day.

But I took that as a sign that maybe I wasn't meant to go to Norway at that time. Maybe I was meant to keep saving and achieve a bigger dream.

The night I got back to Houston, I had the thought of just taking a year off of work the next year. Because to be completely honest, I was not ready in any type of way to start "playing the game of life". I was not ready to just work the rest of my life from 9-5, get married, have kids, and never get to live out my dream of traveling. I'm only 20 years old, but I decided if I don't do this now, then will I ever do it? The answer was I don't know. I had to live my dream now.

So, I started seriously doing my research. Learning new languages, getting a backpack to travel with, seeing where I would want to go. And also realizing that I will have to do this on my own if I want to live my dream now. Like I said in my previous post, no one is worth putting off your dream, even if that means living your dream on your own.

And now, here I am, still getting ready and planning for my adventures to begin..

Also to help me get ready for my trip, I will be attending the Women In Travel Summit in Boston in March! I am so excited to hear some of my favorite travel bloggers speak and to connect with other women who are passionate (and more experienced) about travel.

Remember, to always keep reaching for a dream. And even if you reach that dream, or you realize something is not your dream anymore, DREAM ANOTHER DREAM!

Thanks for reading loves! Can't wait to live these new, exciting adventures ahead!
xx