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 Akaroa doesn’t ease you in. It arrives like a reveal—emerald water tucked into steep, volcanic folds, a harbor that feels less “bay” and more “amphitheater.” You look around and realize you’re standing inside the bones of something ancient: the collapsed crater of a long-quiet volcano, now flooded and alive, rimmed with cliffs and valleys that hold the shape of the old caldera.
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 The moment I climbed aboard the airboat with Airboat Adventure Everglades, I knew I was in for something extraordinary. The engine revved, water hissed, and before I knew it we were skimming across the Everglades’ vast “River of Grass,” sawgrass bending in the breeze, cypress trees rising like green sentinels, and the wild chorus of wetland life all around.
 Last month, I finally made it to Gros Morne National Park in Newfoundland, and I’m still thinking about it.
There are places that impress you, and then there are places that rearrange something in you. Gros Morne belongs in the second category. It is vast, mountainous, coastal, and deeply alive in a way that feels almost old-fashioned now—like wild country before the world learned how to package it. The best comparison I can make is that it reminded me of the national parks out west in America: the scale, the drama, the sense that nature is operating on its own terms. But here, there was something else too—space. Silence. Room to breathe. I could wander for hours without feeling like I was standing in line for beauty. And beauty, here, is everywhere.  Colorado has long been considered a sacred place, and every time I visit, I gain another layer complexity, or a sense of what makes it special. I have lived in Fort Collins before, nearly ten years ago, and much has changed, but much has remained steadfast as well. The whole front range offers a range of fantastic places to spend time when visiting, among my favorites is Boulder, Fort Collins and Colorado Springs. But, as with most people, it’s the mountains that draw my attention most of all. The Rockies have never left me filled without wonder, as I always have a feeling of arriving home when I begin to climb in elevation.
 (Photo by © Brandon Elijah Scott / Eye & Pen) Life's purpose for humanity wasn't to be bound by the soul-crushing shackles of the corporate world and the 9 to 5 circus of continual dead-end jobs. The vast majority of the population simply chooses to embrace mediocrity, and I can’t seem to fathom why. From my viewpoint, they seem to be engulfed in fear, too frightened to make the alterations to their life that would lead to true contentment and adventure. Either that, or they're too comfortable or complacent to venture off the often-traveled, asphalt-paved highway to the commercially-sponsored dream (AKA the “American Dream”) and to take the time to create their own path.
 (Photo by © Brandon Elijah Scott / Eye & Pen) Through my years of traveling the world, I’ve learned countless lessons and recognized numerous themes that connect all human beings, no matter the country or culture. I’ve found that there are certain inherent tendencies that most people have in common, like that of good will towards others. While Western societies have shown to separate communities by the development of social tiers and for the fear of security – I’ve witnessed firsthand, more times than I can count, that most people of this world, no matter their origin or belief, are generally good.
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