I met a guy who was finishing highschool and opting not to attend university, at least not right away.  Instead, much to his parents' surprise, he signed up and paid for short-term language courses in Beijing, China and Paris, France. He bought a ticket to realize an overseas dream. He had learned basic Chinese and French during highschool, but he was impatient to apply himself and survive in the 'real world'.

In the back of his mind, he dreamed of adventure and nurturing transferable skills. They would surely assist whatever experiences would unfold in his future. He reminisced about his boyscout days and having been taught varied ways to "be prepared." He figured he still had much to learn and decided to move ahead.

As it happened, the evolution of a relationship with his girlfriend nearly caused him to change his travel plans. She didn't plan to accompany him. He was unsure if he should just up and go. Yet, after reflection, he decided the best thing for him at that point in his life was to test the relationship with distance and the passage of time. He was focused on his personal quest. His instincts re-oriented his life compass.

When friends heard about his plans, many tried to talk him out of it. Questions were thrown at him from many directions; How will you survive? Where will you get a job? Who will help you if you get into trouble? What will you do when your money runs out? Skeptics and pessimists nearly caused him to back out. Yet, somewhere, deep inside himiself, he felt the pull of his will to step outside of what he thought he knew in order to figure out who he really was. He felt he had to do that outside a classroom.

Although some people described him as a wanderer, he felt he was on a focused quest of increased self-understanding. He packed his copy of The Alchemist by Paulo Coelho and readied himself for the next chapter of his life journey.