Reading tales of adventure can be quite dangerous; it changes something inside or perhaps merely awakens something that was already there. Either way, I am a different person today than I would have been if I hadn’t read voraciously as a child and, well, even now. My favorite stories have always been ones with adventure – be it fantasy, western, historical, or modern.
My top 5 adventure stories:
- The Lord of the Rings series – J.R.R. Tolkien
- The Walking Drum – Louis L’Amour
- Fair Blows the Wind – Louis L’Amour
- The Hobbit – J.R.R. Tolkien
- The Riddle-Master of Hed – Patricia A. McKillip
And many, many more. If you haven’t read these stories, you should add them to your list of books to read! What stories make it to the top of your list?
I’m fairly certain that had I been born and of age during the time of the Lewis & Clark expedition, I would have been on board. Maybe I would have been Lewis…or even Clark, I suppose. Maybe I would have sailed on the Magellan voyage around the world or been with the crew when Columbus sailed the ocean blue. Can you image what it would have been like to have crossed the mountains and finally reached the great Pacific Ocean? What a journey they made and what incredible views they must have seen! I was born into a modern age when the world is basically ‘discovered’ as far as landmasses go. However, most of the world is still uncharted territory on my personal map of discovery and I plan to discover all that I can.
There’s something about the mystery of what is around the next bend in the road or over that next hill, something that calls to me to discover where that curvaceous road leads to or what lies beyond the unmarked wooded trail (of course, one knows to expect such dangers as snakes, spiders, tics – quite disturbing, I’m sure! – and various other wildlife…but that is another story). I can only assume that the same feeling of needing to know the unknown must have driven Lewis & Clark and many other great people to make a journey that would take so much of their lives, yet give so much in return; and not just to them, but to the world that followed after them for generations to come. Naturally, there was danger – but they made it through.
What would pumpkin pie be without spice? Boring, that’s what. The same cooking principle works for adventure and danger (or at least a good imagination so one can pretend one is being chased by cowboys or indians…or a bear, whatever suites your fancy 🙂 ). I’m not saying that you should seek danger, per se, but that every time you step out of your comfort zone, you are a facing a sort of danger in the unknown. But how can one grow without getting out of the familiar? The great explorers did that in their day, we can do no less in ours.
Go out and explore your world, expand your horizons and extrapolate (I really wanted to use that word) what you will from it. Meet your destiny and visit the world – even if only from your armchair. You can make a difference; I believe it.
P.S. – Pt. Lobos Part 2 is coming up next – stay tuned!
Destination: the world 