I used to overlook the small, day-to-day adventures. They were just “fillers” between the bigger trips that I was buying tickets for.

That all changed when Tony and I realized that we were completely broke. It was a painful transition to go from being an idealistic globetrotter to a realistic homebody, but, looking back, I’m glad that it happened. Otherwise, I may never have realized that I could be happy in one place.

As a missionary kid, I had grown up moving from country to country. And by the time I reached young adulthood, I had developed a dependency on travel. During my twenties, I had basically lived for the thrill of being on the next grand adventure: five months in Australia, film school in Hawaii, a month in Peru, two summers in New York City. As long as I fed my wanderlust addiction, I could deal with the boredom, disappointment, and reality of life, because the next dose of excitement was right around the corner. And while I don’t regret any of my traveling experiences, I regret that I didn’t create a backup plan for how I would cope with the lack of those adventures.

When our money ran out and I was forced into a traveling detox, it took me a while to build up my stay-in-one-place muscles. I can’t, in all honesty, say that travel ever stopped being important to me. Even today, if someone handed me a ticket for a trip around the world, I wouldn’t turn it down. But despite my craving for excitement, I became content with smaller doses of it.

And, now, I truly enjoy the small adventures. I can spend a Saturday afternoon walking around our town or exploring a local community. The picture at the top of this post was from one such weekend. Tony and I had a wonderful day just meandering through a small town near where we live. We went on a treasure hunt through the side-of-the-road antique shops and gift shops, looking through their old books, clothes, furniture, and knickknacks. We stopped for a cold drink at a new, local restaurant. We met the owners of the businesses and listened to them talk about their community. And we spent time together, just enjoying each other’s company. Reflecting on joy-filled days like that have made me realize that small adventures really can be great.