It’s Not Only the Destination. It’s Even More than the Journey. It’s Reliving the Story.

How many times have we heard this: “It’s not the destination; it’s the journey!”? Well, I think it is a lot more than both. I believe the more important thing is being able to relive the story many, many times over.

Therein lies the beauty of becoming a storyteller. Surely, the retelling can be done by doing so in front of family and friends, especially with nonverbals that accentuate the highlights. I could have easily relied on my Toastmasters experience had I gone that route. However, I prefer to retell silently on paper, more privately, more for all time.  

Not an Easy Road in the Beginning

It wasn’t easy at first, I come from a world of left brains. From a degree in BS Mathematics and a career in computers, it was hard trying to wake up the right side of my brain. My experience consisted of proofs of theorems, business papers, theses, and dissertations. My first book Carolina: Cruising to an American Dream came about only as a compilation of the daily journals I kept as we RVed across North America.  

The other problem is that English is not my native tongue. I was born in the slums of Manila, acquiring basic English skills through scholarships at the International School for high school, the National Science Development Board for college, and at the multinational companies I joined. Tagalog has a very different syntax from English. When my husband edited my work during my early writing days, he returned pages red with corrections.  

But It Has Become Better

But my writing has improved. After all, I have been writing for thirteen years now. But there’s still that limited flair for idiomatic, local English, that which is spoken in the streets and homes of America. That’s why I have the TV on the whole day so I can continuously imbibe by hearing. Unfortunately, it drives Bill away because I prefer to stay in the more spacious and brighter sunroom than my office. But that is all TMI.

Wanting to tell stories better led me to take the pains to photograph better images. Pictures are worth a thousand words and their combination with words makes the reliving a whole lot better. Years after they happened, it's as if they were happening before my very eyes all over again.

Creating More Depth

There is much I have shared from our exploration of the world but my time here is ever becoming shorter. Now that we are traveling less, I have more time to wonder about our wanderings.  Thus, I am the major beneficiary, reaping the benefits of having documented our travels. 

One by one, as I relive each story, I evoke more feelings and thoughts, sifting through the insights gained and lessons learned. I have found new things to write about. Since shifting gears, around my turning 70, I have crafted more travel essays than journals. It enabled me to publish my second book, Cruising Past 70. It’s Not Only about Outer Journeys. It’s also about Inner Ones, a compilation of my essays and best-read stories.

After I turned 75 last November, I am refining and resharing even those inner journeys. I guess it's part of being older and gaining more wisdom. While spending hours traveling from our “armchairs” or musing from our “rocking” chairs, we learn even more, helping loved ones more.