Age Has No Barrier To Travel
The current Covid pandemic may have limited overseas travel like My Senior Gap Year, but it hasn’t stopped the opportunity for travel. Join us as we embark on Our Senior Aussie Gap Year adventure around Australia….
I love boardwalks. They make me feel like being on little journeys of discovery. Where each step of the path reveals just a bit more of nature’s secrets. From the majestic to the surreal. Safely clinging along a cliff edge feeling the power of the ocean below. Or feeling the pit of your stomach turn as you look down to the canyon below. Or gently meandering across the calm wetlands through a lush field of water lilies dancing to the tunes of bird life.
The Sobering Feeling Behind The Plaques
But there was something else that stood out as we made our way around the beach front boardwalk in Albany, Western Australia. It was the plaques that lined the length of that boardwalk. It is not that memorial plaques are anything unusual. But what stood out were the ages of those remembered on the plaques. From young to old, it was our age group that seemed to be the majority.
It was a sobering feeling. I found myself reflecting on those close to me who had also suddenly left. It’s easy to let life draw you down into feelings of emptiness, even envy or frustration. But unlike the people on those plaques, we still have something very special… the winning lottery ticket of life!
Inspiring People
And there’s plenty of inspiring people proving that point. Like the Albany Ukulele Ladies enthusiastically strumming to an admiring crowd in the city markets. Or my partner’s 86 years young mother. She had a bucket list mission to fulfill. This led us to the small outback town of Onslow in Western Australia. Armed with just two old black and white photos, she determinedly set about town to retrace her steps when she lived as a child 76 years ago. Following leads from one person to another, her efforts were eventually rewarded when she found her childhood home.
And similarly, with my mother of the same age. A couple years back, within two hours of a spontaneous decision, we were on a flight to Darwin. To then set off on a campervan trip reminiscing her past travels as we made our way back across Australia back to Perth.
It was the same when I was travelling overseas. The number of women in their 80’s I met backpacking around the world was inspiring. Then there was 83 year old Young John, as I called this youthfully minded Japanese American. He takes off for a few months each year to study Spanish in Guatemala.
Clearly, age is no limit!
That’s what I love about travel. The inspiring people you meet. People who have often been dealt with a personal life tragedy and then had to adjust to a life they would not have chosen. People who have decided to embraced life to live it to the full.
One such person was a lady I had the pleasure of meeting while recently camping in the Fitzgerald National Park on the south coast of Western Australia.
Mary Fox’s life changed five years ago when her husband suddenly passed away. They had travelled extensively together. Despite finding herself single, she decided she wasn’t prepared to stay home and no longer travel. She came across an online group of 15,000 single women followers who travel the country in motorhomes. She has now also set off on adventure in her new motorhome. Since the start of her new travelling adventure two years ago, Mary says she hasn’t looked back. You can see her story below...
Sure, it can be easy to look down convincing ourselves this last year of 2020 has been a year to forget. But thankfully there are many inspiring people around us who can help us get up to make everyday count. And then inspire others. All before we too become another memory on a boardwalk plaque.
I invite you to join us on Our Senior Aussie Gap Year journey and to be a part of sharing some of the best Australia has to offer. We’ll meet people along the way, laugh, learn and be entertained. It’s a journey that I hope will inspire you to live out your own travel adventures
