行走的力量：趁年輕多去旅行吧！

I have been very fortunate to travel extensively throughout the world while still young. I have visited most of the continental United States, plus many cities in Alaska and Hawaii. I also traveled abroad to Africa, Switzerland, Ireland, Great Britain, Scotland, France, Mexico, and Bonaire. I then lived for several years in Grenada, West Indies. I wouldn’t trade my experiences for the world, and I still have so many countries yet to visit. Based on my experience, I recommend every young person get out of their hometown and see what’s out there. Here are seven ways traveling changed me forever.
我很幸運，依然年輕的我已到過世界的很多地方。我曾遊歷過美國的大部分內陸地區和阿拉斯加、夏威夷的許多城市，也曾行走在非洲、瑞士、愛爾蘭、英國、蘇格蘭、法國、墨西哥和博內爾島的土地上。我在西印度羣島的格林納達度過了幾年時光。我不想說走遍了世界，因爲前面還有許多國家在向我招手。基於個人經驗，我建議年輕人走出家門，去看看外面的世界。下面是旅行使我永久改變的七個方面:

1. Traveling changes the way you relate to the world.
旅行改變你與世界的聯繫方式

I grew up in a tiny rural town. If I hadn’t had the opportunity to travel when I was younger, I would have a difficult time envisioning much else outside my comfortable country bubble. When you travel to other countries and see the amazing beauty of sunsets over seas, eagles riding mountain currents, monkeys swinging through rain forests, grizzlies catching salmon in the rapids, majestic waterfalls spilling off vertical drops, and volcanoes smoking under their fiery breath, you realize the world is full of more beauty that you are capable of seeing in a lifetime. But, you still have the intense passion to try.
我長在一個鄉村小鎮。如果年輕時沒有機會旅行，我會滿足於自認爲舒適的鄉村生活。當你領略異域風情，看到海上日落、山鷹盤旋、猴子穿梭雨林，灰熊激流抓鮭魚，高涯飛瀑，火山噴發後煙霧迷離的驚世之美時，你知道世上有着你一生覽不盡的美景，但是，你仍然充滿激情。

If you don’t see this when you are younger, you have less desire to venture out when you are older and have job and family constraints in play. If I didn’t know what I was missing, I would have less of a desire to put the effort into taking the time to travel. You also develop a deeper sense of obligation to save our planet’s beauty for the coming generations. After all, you’ve seen it firsthand, and it’s worth saving!
如果年輕時不出去看看，等年齡大一些，有了工作，再加上家庭的約束，就更沒有冒險的渴望了。如果不知道我在錯過什麼，我就不會有想方設法抽出時間去旅行的強烈渴望。與此同時，爲子孫後代保護地球之美的更深切的責任感油然而生。你親眼見證了地球之美，子孫後代也應該享受到這種盛景。

2. Traveling changes the way you relate to others.
旅行改變你與他人的聯繫方式

Unfortunately, the area I grew up in didn’t have much diversity. Everyone looked and acted basically the same. When I traveled, I learned about other cultures. I realized that my life could be enriched by developing friendships with people who didn’t look or act like me.
很遺憾，我生長的地方缺乏多樣性，每個人的長相以及他們的行爲方式基本相同。旅行時，我知道其他文化的存在。我意識到，與那些長相或行爲方式和我的不同的人發展友誼，可以豐富我的人生。

Far from my hometown, I developed friendships with people who were nothing like me, but were exactly what I needed. This taught me to embrace, not fear, experiences and relationships that were outside my comfort zone. It also taught me the importance of communication skills. Let’s just say I paid a lot better attention during college Spanish class after visiting Mexico, and perked up in French class after my time in France and Africa.
在遠方，和與我完全不同卻正是我需要的人成了朋友。我從中學會了擁抱而不是懼怕舒適區以外的體驗與友情，我還懂得了溝通能力的重要性。我想說的是，墨西哥歸來的我在大學裏更努力地學習西班牙語，法國和非洲歸來的我投入更大的熱情學習法語。

3. Traveling humbles you enough to realize it’s not all about you.
旅行讓你謙卑、關注他人

the older I become, the more I realize I actually know very little about life. It seems the confidence of knowing it all is usually graced upon the young. However, the sooner that bubble bursts, the better; at least in my case. Traveling sometimes puts you in tough situations. You see that the world is so much bigger than your perspective on it. You soon realize the world doesn’t revolve around you. You learn that you really weren’t the big fish in the ocean, but just a tiny minnow in a pothole.
隨着年齡的增長，我越發意識到我對生活知之甚少。似乎年輕人有着無所不知的自信，而這種自信越早打破越好，至少在我如此。旅行時而將你帶入困境。你知道，世界比你的想像要廣闊得多。你很快會意識到世界不是以你爲中心，你不過是水坑裏的一條小米諾魚，而不是大海里的一條大魚。

Now, that doesn’t mean you aren’t still important, but it does change your perspective to be more open to learning from other people and situations vs lecturing and bestowing your vast wisdom to those lucky enough to be in earshot. Traveling teaches you to let go of the perceived concept of control. You learn that it’s a big enough challenge to just control yourself, and learn to give up trying to do so for the rest of the planet.
並不是說你不重要，而是旅行的確開闊視野，讓你樂於從他人或身外的環境中獲取知識，而不是向那些有幸傾聽你的人講述你的無窮智慧並賜予他們知識。旅行教你不固守已感知到的控制理念。控制自己就已是巨大的挑戰，不要爲試圖控制周圍的事物作徒勞努力。4. Traveling empowers you to take on new challenges.
旅行讓你充滿激情地迎接新挑戰

Just as traveling is humbling, it is also empowering. You realize you can do things you never thought possible. For example, I have lived for the past two years in Grenada, West Indies. I have always enjoyed driving on the right side of nicely paved and open roads of the U.S. Here, I was thrown into driving on the left side of the road on twisty mountain passes down broken roads that aren’t much bigger than a one-lane driveway, yet they expect two-way traffic to freely meet around the blind corners. Add to the lovely mix the fact that there are drop-offs with no guard rail along most of the drive, and far below the sheer free fall you see the rooftops of homes.
正如旅行讓你謙卑，旅行賦予你力量。你會意識到，你能做你以前認爲不可能的事情。例如，在過去的兩年裏我一直住在西印度羣島的格林納達。我很享受在美國平坦空曠的公路上靠右行駛的感覺。想想我曾經沿着不比單行道寬多少的崎嶇山路靠左行駛，希冀着在看不到對面來車的拐角處有條雙行道來避免撞車。更可怕的是，沿途幾乎看不到護欄的公路上還有陡坡，而下面是可以自由落體的懸崖，懸崖下還住着人家。

So, if I lose control, I not only kill myself, but I land on a house and kill a nice family having dinner. No pressure! Yet, after more than a few white-knuckled moments, I can now drive comfortably with the locals and don’t bat an eye at the drop offs, the livestock in the road, the pot holes, or the fact that there is no way I should have made it through that tight squeeze with that oncoming car without losing a mirror. Conquering this fear helped me learn that I could adapt to more than I felt I was capable of conquering. I think that’s a good thing to learn at any age, but you can apply it longer throughout your lifetime if you start early.
所以，如果失控了，殺死的不只我自己，車子砸向屋頂，還要殃及正在吃飯一個幸福家庭。現在輕鬆了！經歷多次緊張時刻後，我可以舒服地與當地人一起駕車，不必爲陡坡、路上的家畜或坑槽而汗涔涔，也不必擔心對面來車無路可逃而掛掉倒車鏡。對這種恐懼的征服讓我知道，我應對恐懼的能力出乎我的意料。我覺得這種經歷對任何年齡的人都是件好事情，如果早體驗，那麼你一生中會受益更多。

5. Traveling gives you empathy for global suffering.
旅行讓你與世界同甘苦

When you travel, you learn how much you truly have that you take for granted. Many people live in poverty that is unfathomable to those who have never walked their streets and heard their stories. Watching the wars and famines on the news takes on a whole new meaning when you have a personal connection with the people there. You lose the callousness and egotistic attitude that can sometimes develop when you can’t relate to that region of the world. And, it compels you to help others and give back.
旅行時，你會重新審視你認爲理應擁有的東西。許多人生活在貧窮中，那種未走近他們、不知道他們故事的人無法理解的貧窮。親眼目睹人們飽受戰爭與飢餓之苦時，新聞中播放的戰爭與飢餓會在你眼前呈現出全新的概念。在你不知道人們遭受苦難時，無情與自私悄然滋長，但接觸過遭受苦難的人之後，這樣的態度就會消失，你將伸出援手幫助他人。

6. Traveling pushes your educational horizons.
旅行增長見識

Sadly, I never liked history in school. Just reading the stories in books seemed so boring to me. However, when I visited the palace of Versailles in France, marveled at the architecture of basilicas in Africa, climbed the ruins of castles in Ireland, visited the White House, and walked the halls of the Louvre, I couldn’t help but get a new appreciation for history. Traveling makes history come alive. The stories are no longer pictures in a book, but tangible memories you remember much longer than anything you could study in school.
令人難過的是，我在學校從不喜歡歷史。讀書本上那些故事似乎無聊至極。但在我參觀法國凡爾賽宮時、讚歎非洲大教堂的建築風格時、登上愛爾蘭城堡廢墟時、踏入白宮時、徜徉在盧浮宮的殿堂時，我情不自禁地對歷史產生了鑑賞之情。旅行賦予歷史生命。書中的故事不再是圖片，而是有形的記憶，它比書本上學到的任何東西都留存更久遠。

7. We are never guaranteed old age, so enjoy life’s experiences now!
我們不能決定自己的壽命，所以現在就開始享受生活體驗吧！

I think a lot of young people put off traveling because they want to be responsible, work hard, get married, have kids, and build up a life. However, I think it’s a mistake to put off traveling in exchange for the belief that you can do it when you retire and have more time. While I certainly plan to continue to travel after I retire, I also realize I am not guaranteed old age. If something happens and I don’t live to see my forties, fifties, or sixties, I will have no regrets. I have experienced the world to the best of my ability by taking every opportunity presented to me to see all of this gorgeous planet that I can. Traveling has made me the person that I am, and I’m so grateful that I have plenty of years left with this version of me to continue the adventure.
我想許多年輕人因爲擔負責任、努力工作、結婚生子、開創美好生活，所以推遲着旅行計劃。但我覺得退休後或時間富餘時再旅行的想法是錯誤的。我有退休後繼續旅行的計劃，但同時也知道生命可能隨時終止。如果事情發生了，沒活到40歲、50歲或60歲，我不後悔。因爲我珍惜呈現在面前的每一次機會，盡我所能地溶入這個世界，盡情飽覽地球的美麗。旅行成就了現在的我，這版本的我還有充足的餘年繼續冒險使我心懷感激。