Why I Decided to Come Home

There are so many reasons and then there are also none. Coming home was always something I knew I would do eventually, even just for a little while. I always told myself I was travelling for a certain amount of time, or that I would return home when I ran out of money. In the back of my mind I also tried to tell myself that I may also need to go home in the event it just wasn’t feeling right anymore and I needed a break. 

If I strip it back to the bare basic reasons, then I decided to come home because of that last reason. I just needed a break so that it would feel right again. I still had a large amount of my travel savings and I hadn’t hit my initial estimated length of travel yet. My time in South America felt complete and like it needed to come to an end. But I just wasn’t ready to start the next chapter yet.

It didn’t feel the way it did in the beginning and I didn’t want to start exploring a new area of the world unless I was in the right frame of mind for it. I needed a break and I needed to recharge so that the next time I stepped foot on foreign soil, hiked a new mountain or explored a new city I was excited to do so and would see it with the same awe and excitement I did when I took on Patagonia. 

The Next Step at Home

So here I am, writing this post from the comfort of my mum’s gorgeous little house in Brisbane, Australia. I have a huge list of friends and family to catch up with. Some based nearby and others spread across the country. I have an even bigger list of hikes, multi-day treks, road trips and adventures to tackle while I’m back to ensure I make the most of my time on home soil. 

While I haven’t really figured out my next steps yet, I have a feeling my next few adventures may not be entirely solo. I absolutely adored my time as a solo traveller, particularly while in Patagonia where the other solo travellers were just as friendly and adventurous as I was. But I think I am ready to share some travel experiences with some of my closest and dearest friends and family. I want to make some more memories with the people I have loved and cared about for as long as I can remember, and not just with the new people I’ve met along the way.

Life is about balance and staying true to yourself. It’s about feeding your soul and doing the things in life that make you truly happy. That’s why I decided to come home. In the beginning, everything I was doing over there felt so right and so true to what I wanted and needed in life. And then when it stopped feeling like that I really had to be honest with myself and make the right decision. The one that was right for me. In that moment, the right decision was coming home. Even if it is just for a little while, or for several months. I needed to come home. 

What I Learnt In 5 Months

My five month adventure in South America taught me so many things. Some of the most important lessons and discoveries were about myself and what I really want in life. It taught me how to be independent and courageous again. How to live an adventurous life without fear or unnecessary caution. It also taught me that I need my people in my life. 

While I met some absolutely incredible people on my travels, it really hit home to me that I already have some pretty incredible people in my life. I am lucky enough to have already met some extremely special people who will be in my life forever and who will always have my back no matter what. I also realised just how close I am with my family and that they aren’t just family, they are my best friends. 

Every single one of my family members and closest friends had my back every step of the way, every adventure I had, and every big decision I made. They all just wanted me to be happy and to be doing what was right for me and not what anyone else wanted. That made it so much easier to make the decision to come home, to take a break and to reassess my plans because I knew they would be there for me with whatever decision I made.

The Other Reasons

There are also some more in depth personal reasons why I needed to come home right at this particular time. While it already felt like the right decision, adding on top of that some other motivators really made it clear that I needed to come home now. 

Flying home when I did meant that I could make it home in time for some very huge milestone events in my extended families lives. It also meant that I could be here for family members who were going through some pretty hairy medical issues and that I wasn’t thousands of miles away when they just needed a hug. Further to all of this, it also meant that I could bring a very important person back into my life who I had left behind to go discover myself and my purpose.

And I know I’ve talked about this before, but there were also some mental health reasons too. As per my previous posts about mental health and hitting the travel block, I have been struggling a bit mentally and emotionally in the past couple of months. I needed to be in a safe place where I could really spend the time and energy I needed to on myself to get out of the rut I had found myself in. Having my people by my side would also help me overcome this and make sure I didn’t go any further down that rabbit warren.

There were all these reasons that piled on top of my already convinced mind that it was the right time for me to take a break and come home which just made it too hard to resist. So I booked a flight and I made my journey back to Australia. 

No Regrets

Being here now amongst it all, I am feeling absolutely no regret for my decision. I know that it was the right one for me and for where I was at. Looking back on my huge South American solo adventure, I have  a smile on my face. I don’t feel any sadness for leaving it behind because my mind and memories are so full of all of the experiences, laughter, challenges and incredible friendships I made and experienced along the way.

I achieved things I never thought I would be capable of and I am honestly so proud of my accomplishments in the last five months. Some of the adventures I had were so insanely larger than life and truly unexpected that I never could have planned or hoped for them to turn out the way they did. 

Live Life the Way You Want

Now I am back I am ready to take on life in a whole new way. I am ready to find balance and peace within myself. I have a new appreciation for my life at home and for my dreams of travel and writing and all things that seemed so unattainable in the past. Though I am not entirely sure what the next steps are for me, I know that I will continue to follow my heart and to chase the dreams that set my soul on fire. To be the person I want to be and to the live the life that makes me happy. I will continue my pursuit for purpose and I hope you want to stay on this journey with me while I do. 

Life is why I decided to come home. And I am going to live it. 

--Girl Seeking Purpose