Walking on Sunshine

As I walk to the train station in the early morning, with each step it gets lighter and lighter as the sun lazily creeps into the sky. I am most definitely not a morning person, but I woke up extra early to catch a train to my next destination.

The sunrise reminded me of my dad. He would always call me "sonechko," meaning sun in Ukranian. He'd especially use the nickname for me whenever I would get up in the mornings (usually late mornings), saying "O, sonechko stalo" meaning "aww, the sun is finally up."

Now that I think about it, I find it ironic because I´m always grumpy in the mornings. Regardless, I was always his sunshine. That's why he named me Olena, my name meaning "light."

The last time I heard my dads voice was one year ago, when he called to wish me a happy birthday.

Feeling nostalgic, spending my birthday miles away from home and wandering the hills of Scotland, I thought about how incredibly fast time flies. I used to think only old people talk about how fast time flies, but really, our days are not infinite, so each and every moment is so precious. Maybe I'm just getting old already?

I love traveling. And one of the biggest things that I've learned from traveling is embracing change. In travel, and in life, you can plan as much as you want, but what actually happens is beyond our control. We can only ponder where we're going or where we'll end up. In reality, we don't know what awaits ahead for us. And that's what makes it such a grand adventure! Its the surprises, the challenges, the curveballs, the lucky strikes, the eye-openers, and all the little things that mean the most.

Whether our destiny is already written or whether we create our own, I don't know, but I'm excited for all that is still to come.