Tales of Adventure!

Always, I have wanted to go on an adventure. The kind where one faces daring odds, meets all sorts of new people, travels to fascinating and terrifying places, and achieves what they set out for, perhaps more.

Oh yes, I have pictured it all. I'd wear those boots that seem made for adventure. A rucksack filled with only the essentials would be on my back. My hair would be up in a messy but pretty ponytail, and a grin would paint my face. I'd probably feel born ready.

Unfortunately, quests and adventures are never planned for; they are extemporaneous, happening on ordinary days just out of the blue. Those embarking on such journeys never expected to be on them, or maybe never even wanted to be. These adventures bring great hardship, shaping experiences, and occasionally deep sorrow and pain. Many times have I wondered how these characters endure. How they can find the strength to emerge from trial and suffering when it almost seems unimaginable.

Could I do that?

In the movie Sherlock Holmes: A Game of Shadows, Holmes, Watson, and the rest of their group are sprinting in a forest from their enemies. Countless bullets and explosions follow them, and Holmes has a deep wound.

Would I be able to escape under such conditions?

Ally Condie's novel Crossed tells a somewhat similar story. Heroine Cassia and two other characters have to run nonstop for days.

I may enjoy running, but could I run like that if I had to?

In the Immortal Instruments book series by Cassandra Clare, the characters treat eating, wounds, and fighting as if they were nothing but slight hindrances. For example, when heroine Clary gets cut by another character, she describes it as a "metal kiss," a mere sting that brought blood.

Would I view a cut or wound in such a way?

During M. Night Shyamalan's film The Village, Ivy Walker must journey through the forbidden woods to obtain a medicine for her dying lover. In the woods live terrifying creatures, and sure enough, Ivy encounters one. Luckily, after some scarily close encounters, she outsmarts the creature.

Could I do the same? Or would fear paralyze me?

In the epic movie series of The Lord of the Rings, there are almost too many examples to count, but I'll name a few. Frodo and Sam travel for eons, it seems, with hardly any food or water, and they're barefoot for heaven's sake! On top of that, the ring saps Frodo's sanity and strength. As for Aragorn, Legolas, and Gimli, they fight battles just about endlessly, and Aragorn even fell off a cliff. Eowyn and Merry fight and survive a battle of frightening proportions. All of the characters take a beating, both in body and spirit.

Would I survive all those things like they did? Could there be any hope for me?

And, though I only listed each story's physical hardships, could I endure the spiritual, mental, and emotional ones as well?

Samwise Gamgee, one of my favorite characters from this amazing series, said this:
"It's like in the great stories, Mr. Frodo. The ones that really mattered. Full of darkness and danger, they were. And sometimes you didn't want to know the end. Because how could the end be happy? How could the world go back to the way it was when so much bad had happened? But in the end, it's only a passing thing, this shadow. Even darkness must pass. A new day will come. And when the sun shines it will shine out the clearer. Those were the stories that stayed with you. That meant something, even if you were too small to understand why. But I think, Mr. Frodo, I do understand. I know now. Folk in those stories had lots of chances of turning back, only they didn't. They kept going. Because they were holding on to something."


I love this. This is how those characters not only survived, but eventually thrived, in each of the stories I mentioned. 


This brings me to my life. As I said earlier, I've always wanted to embark on an adventure, and whatever form that adventure might take, I want to be ready for it. For the past couple of months, my personal character has withered, leaving me disheartened. But now, after I've tripped up a bit, after figuring some things out, my fire is burning. Much like Sam said, the shadow has passed, and the sun shines so very brightly on every single point in my life. Though I may not know what lies ahead, because of this, I am ready for it. 


Bring on the adventure! 

The Other Side of Someday

At one time or another, we have all said, "Someday I want this" or "Someday, I want to be this."

Everyone has a Someday. I'm no different.

In the movie Knight and Day, Tom Cruise's character says "Someday. That's a dangerous word. It's really just a code for 'never.'" Part of me agrees with this, and part of me wants to prove Cruise wrong. We say things because a certain part of us truly means them. So, when we use the word Someday, we actually hope for it.

I want to reach my Someday. I have things I want to do, to see, and to become.

It's like my entire future lies on the other side of a window. I can see it, but not grasp or breathe it. Very recently, I grabbed the latch, flung the window open and... bashed my head into a brick wall. The curtain holding the illusion of Someday crumpled at my feet. I still feel the bruise. It keeps me from looking at the window again. I guess my insecurities, doubts, and fears built up and up until they created a barrier to my happiness.

I've decided to break that barrier now. Such little things should not hold me back from what I am capable of. I am my own voice, and though I've been struggling to find it, nobody can be it for me.

Mainly, my problem is finding who I am. Just what can I offer the world? What can I say that will change people for the better? Some people's words and ideas have touched me to the core, but they are not my own, and I need to express my own. Especially if I want to be a force for good.

So, my Someday involves becoming the person I have always wanted to be. Even then, the journey will not end. Learning and growing will always accompany me, I should think. What I'm trying to say is, I want to reach the other side of Someday. Where I can continue life, love, and learning in the best way possible.

When is my Someday? My Someday is today. It is tomorrow. It is any day in my future. For, every day holds a new opportunity to better myself and to discover more of who I can be. Humans are not flat, completable beings. We are ever-changing, ever able to unlock more potential. Perhaps that is why Eternity is never-ending. We will always be learning, discovering, loving, and living.

Because my Someday is any and every day (though essentially in the future), here is a list of things I have always wanted to do. Hopefully, along my journey of self-realization, I will do these things.

• I want to feel the rain on my hands in an old city. Like London. 

• Dance like they do in the Jane Austen novels.

• Walk across a giant rustic suspension bridge from the movies. 

• I want to walk along the shore while having a conversation with someone I truly love. Cliche, yes. Does it change anything? Nope. 

• Write something of importance. Whether it be a novel, a play, a poem, or song. I wanna change the way people think with my writing. 

• I have always desired to speak French pretty fluently. When I have my own family, I want to teach my children to speak the language. It would be so cool to have a bilingual family! 

•  I wanna cook without any sort of recipe. I'll look in the pantry and fridge, grab what I want, and make it into something wonderfully yummy and special. Simple, but still a desire.

• Make a medical discovery. Genetics is such a critical field with almost constant innovation. And because I love it, I think I'd be invested enough to discover something of import. Through this work, I could help people everywhere. 

•  I want to get married on a pristine, serene, and beautiful wintry day. That is the Someday I cannot wait to reach.