Why Not?

I’ve never really planned out my life. I’ve never really been one of those people who was going to do x by this age, and be y by this age.

I’ve always tried to do what will make me the happiest at that moment and point in my life. Whether that’s taking a job in my hometown, spending a month working remotely in Costa Rica, traveling across India volunteering on my own, or moving back to Thailand.

Selfish and irresponsible, maybe. Rewarding and character-building, most definitely.

My entire adult life I’ve gravitated to living for the present future, rather than the actual future. And with that I’ve had very little regard for the far future – which we all know involves retirement savings, health insurance, investments, and all those little adult things one is supposed to do.

I guess you could say I’m living life “the easy way”…

“Do the difficult things while they are easy and do the great things while they are small. A journey of a thousand miles must begin with a single step.”—Lao Tzu

With this lifestyle comes both anxiety and great opportunities. Luckily I’ve learned to somewhat control my anxiety, by being a day-to-day insane planner, and by doing so I’ve been able to open my eyes to the multitude of opportunities around me.

A year ago, when I first moved back to Thailand, it was my sneaking desire to somehow become a travel blogger. By working and interacting and networking with them, I thought “hey I’ll learn from you and be able to do that too (and maybe even better)”…now, after 12 months of meeting more than 40 travel bloggers I luckily know that is not my calling. Yes, I love traveling. Yes, I love writing. And more than that I love the thought of being paid to do both. However, I hate the thought of promoting and taking pictures of myself. But most of all, I hate the thought of experiencing a new culture, new country, or new experience with the pressure of having to write about it. You lose that sense of curiosity and become too focused on getting that perfect photo.

With this newfound realization in hand, that’s how we get to the one night in a non-touristy town on the border of Malaysia, a craft beer in hand and me hearing the words come out of my mouth, “Why not?”

“Why not open a hostel together?” “Why not work for ourselves?” “Why not build a life on an island I love?”

Why not…?!

So that’s where my current life journey stands. We are opening a small hostel with Thai partners on the island. Did I think it through fully, probably not as much as most people would. Did I jump at the chance to have something to call my own and be passionate about, most definitely. Am I ridden with apprehension and anxiety, of course. But, have I ever been more excited about anything in my entire life, not at all.

So, why not?!

Construction of our small hostel started last week, I’ll be sure to keep everyone up-to-date on the progress. The plan is to be open in January 2017. We were given the task of naming the hostel and after much deliberation we came up with “Journey”.

Life is a journey. So why not enjoy it, and share it.

Journey on!