Wanderlust

I have a condition called Wanderlust. Wikipedia describes it like this, "The loanword from German came to English in 1875^[1] or 1902^[3] as a reflection of what was then seen as a characteristically German predilection for wandering that may be traced back to German romanticism and the German system of apprenticeship.

The term forms from the German words wandern (to hike) and Lust (desire). The term wandern is frequently misused as a false cognate, it in fact does not mean "to wander", but rather "to hike." Placing the two words together translates to "to enjoy hiking", although is commonly described as an enjoyment of strolling or wandering.

In German the term has become somewhat obsolete. A more contemporary equivalent for the English wanderlust in the sense of "love of travel" would be Fernweh (literally "an ache for the distance").

Since the term is a noun, its initial letter is always capitalized in German ("Wanderlust") but usually written in lower case in English ("wanderlust")."

Do you have this? An ache for the distance? For me, it's genetic, nothing I can change. It's inherited from my mother's side of the family. I am always thinking of changing my surroundings. Decorating and renovating when I cannot move, moving apartments (this is why I don't like to buy homes) when I am able to move locally, moving cities when I am able, moving from state-to-state and now -- moving to a new country. I love to roam around and explore and had I not married a man who isn't exactly the opposite, I would be planning my next big move to a new spot in another year or two, possibly Sweden, maybe Australia, Belgium, or even Denmark. I've even thought about moving to California. There is nothing wrong with me, I'm not suffering from childhood trauma or feeling insecure or lost or anything else that often is negatively associated with a wandering soul. I'm not "looking" for anything in the sense that I'm lonely and in need. Truth is, I get bored very easily. My teachers in school always sent home letters to my parents that I was bossy and wanted to take over the class and be the teacher, not the student. It wasn't because I was truly bossy, it's because I'm a natural leader, motivator, teacher and the type of person who is highly motivated and who gets bored when left alone or not challenged consistently. I love challenge, I thrive on it... when things go too smoothly I feel bored. Not that I want stress, negativity and chaos in my life -- just the opposite, I seek peace, love and understanding. I have pure intentions. I run from negativity. But what I personally thrive on is external stimulation in many forms, healthy stimulation (not destructive or negative), and if I am bored or not finding it somewhere I either become very inventive and develop things to occupy me or I start to consider a new environment so that I may once again feel challenged and thrive. When my life is too perfect I feel bored, I wither. When things are too easy, I can't blossom. Give me challenge, give me hard work that I love, give me projects that take months and endless hours to complete and I am ON IT. Give me something to consume my time, like moving or renovating or decorating, I blossom. So now here I am, living in Hannover, Germany exactly 6 months today. SIX MONTHS. I can't believe it, it feels like I just got here in some ways and like I've lived here for 10 years on other days. How will I survive long term when all is going so smoothly, so well, so efficiently? I was thinking about this today. And I decided on how I will answer this. I will create healthy challenges. I will teach, I will write, I will take on projects, I will push myself and drive myself and bloom where I've been planted as the popular expression goes. Because though I may have wanderlust, I've decided that I will ache for Istanbul, Paris, and Rome and then jump on a cheap fly and just GO there. I don't need to live there to satisfy the ache. And I will learn to ache for other things, I will learn to ache for a new distance -- maybe ones that will challenge me in new ways - instead of aching to see more and experience more I will ache to become more, learn more, and grow more. So these are my thoughts on being a wanderlust... Do you ache for a new distance? Are you also a wanderlust? How do you manage, especially if your significant other, career or children prohibit you from packing up and running to uncharted territories? I'd love to see how you manage... xo, Holly