Defining Adventure

Quick, what’s the first thing that comes to mind when I say the word adventure? Sky diving? Sailing the South Seas? Climbing Mt. Kilimanjaro? To be sure, those are all adventures. But what about the adventure in your own back yard? Ever see kids being adventurous? They’ve got the right idea…they don’t self-limit their imagination. 

Adventure can simply be a sense of doing something different. I weekend traveled near to home recently, to Big Sur, with the intention of making it an adventure. The idea was to stop at any and all places that looked interesting along the route.  There were no plans on where to stay, what to see, where to eat. The adventure was to fully take advantage of what came our way.

Imagine a honey bee meandering across a field of wild flowers, buzzing from flower to flower going from point A to point B (no pun intended). If you close your eyes, you can probably see the swirling, flowing, ‘s’ shaped line of its path. Now imagine a billiard table with just the cue ball and the 8-ball remaining. With a resounding ‘crack’ the 8-ball travels diagonally across the green felt to drop neatly into the corner pocket. Very directed, very purpose driven, very accomplished. No stops along the way…no sight seeing…just get the job done, “game over”…“rack ‘em up.” It’s a great way to accomplish things, but not a great way to experience things.

Well on this weekend adventure I was a honey bee. I meandered. I stopped and smelled the roses (at times, literally). It was enjoyable and I came away with a sense of having experienced the beauty of the wild coastline that is known as Big Sur. I stopped to let my breath be taken away by the beauty of the waves crashing on the massive rocks below. As the sun set, I mentally said good-bye to one thing I was ready to let go of, and opened my heart to receive something new. I stopped to marvel at the full moon rising in the barely-turned-night sky, and to greet it again in the early morning hours as I walked back from the restaurant generously supplied with coffee and heavy drinking mugs.

Everything took on a new meaning. I left no corner un-viewed, no vista un-visited, no soaring bird un-hailed. I was not satisfied with getting there and back…I reveled in the joy of experiencing all the weekend had to offer. And the sense of adventure was palpable…I loved feeling free. Remember ‘free’ is one of my core values…and this released a sense of freedom that truly set my spirit soaring. I didn’t just have an experience, I was the experience.