Song of the Open Road

Afoot and lighthearted I take to the open road,
Healthy, free, the world before me,
The long brown path before me, leading wherever I choose.
...
From this hour, freedom!
From this hour I ordain myself loos'd of limits and imaginary lines,
Going where I list, my own master, total and absolute,
Listening to others, and considering well what they say,
Pausing, searching, receiving, contemplating,
Gently, but with undeniable will, divesting myself of the hold that would hold me.

I was looking up a quote today and I came across this passage the poem Song of the Open Road, by Walt Whitman (one of my favorite poets).  The entire piece is extremely long and rambles on in that great life-loving, celebratory way that Whitman seems to express in all his poetry.

Whatever it is, these lines spoke to me today. I guess it was partially the realization that this weekend I'm actually leaving for London. I'm about to embark on that life-changing, spirit-freeing, mind-opening rite-of-passage we like to call "travel."

My open road is not one in the literal sense. Rather, it is a path I'm taking in life, a personal journey to understand the world a little better and my own self as well.