A Different Road

What do you do when the bug bite wears off?

In as much as I would like to quit my job and travel on a shoestring, I know deep inside my gut that it will not make me happy. Sure it would be nice to be able to update my Facebook timeline and Instagram feed ever so often with a new destination that I just ticked off my bucket list but deep inside, my heart is yearning for something more.

Oops. Did I just said that out loud.

I have tried to live the backpacking lifestyle and mingle with backpackers, and I do not think that it is the life that I want. Don't get me wrong, I learned a lot from these trips and the inspiring people I met along the way, but one of the most important thing that traveling taught me is to be true to myself. 

Most people travel to identify who they truly are and know what they are really capable of, and in my adventures I think I did discover who I am and who I want to become. 

The Piercing Emptiness

I noticed that at the end of my trips, there will always be a time when I feel empty. I am haunted by this emotion usually a day after my trip. I am not sure if it is my heart or my wallet that is feeling empty but somehow I think there is a connection to both. I know it would sound really bad to say that I feel better with a hefty savings account and portfolio but it is the truth.

I do not want to live a life of make-believe that money doesn't matter because it does. Instead, I want to rise up above my finances and be able to play with the system.

Financial Freedom

I guess it started that fateful day of July 4, 2014 when Travel Madness Expo 2014 and Money Summit and Wealth Expo 2014 was simultaneously held at the SMX Convention Center in Pasay. It is the day that I betrayed the travel gods.

I saw the people lining up at the Travel Madness Expo and I was surprised that I did not feel jealous to the people that were able to book a week in Batanes or Japan.

I thought to myself that I am done with the short-lived escapes. It is now time for the master plan, the absolute escape to the rat race, the ultimate freedom.

A Different Road

I now actually consider staying home and reading a book a better way to spend my Saturdays than going outdoors and climbing a mountain. Not that I do not want to climb that mountain but because I have to practice delayed gratification to reach higher peaks and greater destinations.

I guess at this point in my life and in this new endeavor, I need to realize that living life is not always about jumping off a cliff or dyeing your hair purple. Sometimes it is about finding your niche, fulfilling your purpose and leaving a legacy.