not all who wander.

not all those who wander are lost.

at my wedding reception, my little brother – whom i respect more than most – quoted this lionized j.r.r. tolkien line in his speech to describe me and my journey in life thus far. i have never heard someone use such a simple group of words to describe me so accurately.

the majority of my life i have been doing things naturally against the grain. my mother called this being a strong-willed or difficult middle child. friends called it irresponsible decision-making. so naturally, i never really learned how to admire this part of me. my early adolescence –> adulthood was spent arguing with myself over and over about why i couldn’t just be content with doing things the way everyone else was. an internal conflict that won me over and crowned me a free-spirit.

adulthood has taught me, if anything, that following what everyone else does with their life absolutely does not guarantee happiness. if anything, i see too many people around me swimming to create what the american dream promised but realizing it was only a lie, a long journey to a destination that doesn’t exist. on my personal journey, i have had to learn that joy comes from knowing who God created bethany to be and moving forward with whatever ridiculously exciting of an adventure that that entails. because i am a firm believer that when God was creating individuals he did not consider the american dream an important factor for their life.

all of this to say is this:

i have been profoundly inspired by those who chose to go against what culture has predestined for them to do. from my sister-in-law who left her job to move to korea last week. to my brother who is joining the air force after receiving his college diploma because he wants to serve, it wasn’t just a back-up plan. to my couples who elope or have a surprise wedding because they didn’t need the traditional wedding to become a family. to my friend who broke off an engagement because she was honest with herself and knew it wasn’t time for her yet, even if that means disappointing a ton of people. to the woman in the wheel chair that participated in the half marathon last weekend. to artists and innovators who want to do what they are passionate about because they would never trade it for the security of different career. to the men and women that chose to stop and analyze a little deeper than their social or religious counterparts. and of course, to the vagabonds of this world.

i need these people in my life. these are the people that remind me that wanderers are not lost, we are merely designed to live life differently.

i am inspired by you all.