Adventure: It’s what you make it.

I think today more than ever, it’s easy to get caught up in the belief that our own lives are mundane.

The internet constantly throws articles about traveling to far-off lands in our faces. Instagram makes it easier than ever to see a lot of beautiful people doing amazing things. Every single day, our news feeds are filled with photos of exotic places and people enjoying them.

I went through a bit of a funk for a while because of this exact phenomenon. I was obsessed with a number of different blogs written by people who essentially lived on the bike, wandering the world. The simple lifestyle appealed to me—a lifestyle free of cars, mortgages, an excess of belongings, and essentially, any responsibility except survival and making enough money to continue to support the pleasure of exploring via bicycle.

There was a part of me that wished to pick up and adopt this lifestyle. But as is the case for many people, it’s not realistic, at least not right now. Sure, everyone has the power to abandon their lives and set off to explore the world. But many of us have other obligations that are important to us—family, kids, animals, communities, jobs we like, reasons to stay rooted. Most of us just can’t take off for weeks or months at a time on a regular basis, but that doesn’t mean we can’t still adventure every single day.

Adventure, after all, is what you make of it. It’s all about attitude, a willingness to explore and learn, and step out of your comfort zone, whether it’s a mile or a thousand miles from home.

Read the rest of my story about an everyday adventure from a few weeks ago on dirtragmag.com.