I've been writing this blog for just over 4 months. It has been read by almost 4,000 individual readers (not including me). It has been read in 24 countries. The large 5 pointed stars on the map above represent countries where I've traveled or lived. The small 4 pointed stars are countries and regions I'll be traveling to in just over a month. The hearts represent the countries of my readers. Amazingly, most of them are in countries I've yet to visit and long to see before my eyes shut for the last time. Africa will be the next place I lead an educational tour, if the students are willing. Asia after that!
I'm not currently aware of knowing anyone in Russia, Indonesia, Italy, Ukraine, Mexico, Chile, Columbia, Malaysia, China, Spain, or India. Friends may be traveling through these countries or new friends may be finding me through Google +, as it says I had 18K viewers and I can't imagine why other than my "circle of friends" (some well-known and well-followed) on Google being an onramp to my page and by extension my blog.
I'm aware of knowing people in the US, Canada, France, UK, Japan, Australia, NL, Germany, Costa Rica, Ireland, Austria, Egypt, and Trinidad & Tobago. I'm looking forward to visiting Australia and New Zealand next month and returning to Oahu in July.
Social Network. Internet. Messeges in digital bottles. 20 years ago, in South Park talking about the new global tribe and asking what did people want....this is what we wanted. To share our universal stories and feel connected. To be of use to ourselves and others.
I've been fascinated by writing, maps and travel since I was very young. The idea of sailing around the world still appeals to me. The idea of every buying a plane ticket around the world appeals to me, too. Only it wouldn't be a fast and shiny 3 week and 7 stop flight, I'd drag it out for YEARS. Go native in each port, make a base, and get lost in one direction until I had to find my way back. Then do it all over again on a different point of the compass the next day...
The reason I loved sailing on the boat from Maine to St. Croix was that I could account for every mile of the trip between the points of departure and arrival. Sailing last month through the B.V.I., I experienced that same sense of belonging to the human scale of the world, traveling by wind power from island to island and learning about the distinct nature of each place.
Keeping journals of my travels and reminding my self now of how little my young self knew or understood in depth is astonishing. This summer I hope to cull some of the tidbits of this ritualized practice to provide some insights for a memoir. In August I hope to have the seeds to bring to a workshop to with an established author/teacher for a week and nurture it along....
The owl is calling me. Earlier in the woods the ravens were following me and the dogs, hopeful that Cora might catch another rabbit or at least a snake warming itself. Now it's late, I've walked the trail in my neighborhood and dragged my finger across the blog map in wonder of how far my fingers tapping here at night, into the land of x's and o's, have taken my thoughts...so far around the globe and yet, curiously, closer to who I really and maybe someday closer to unknown people I may one day call my readers and friends.
Good night, to friends and readers ~ near and far, G'night!
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