It was Christmas morning, the year lost to time’s winged chariot. It could have been during my high school years, maybe early college. Regardless, I had not yet learned that the plan I had created for my life was never really up to me. I was still unaware that the tidy (and largely straight) little path I had planned to travel down would convolute over and into itself dozens of times in the years to come.

I could tell from the shape and weight that it was a book, and a hefty one at that. A gift from my mom, it was a soft cover copy of 1000 Places to See Before You Die. Like a lot of girls at that precarious age, the thoughts and actions of my mother were mostly used as fodder for late-night gab-sessions with equally confused compatriots. Why my mom saw that book and thought it would be an appropriate gift for me, Trysta, is still unknown to this day. She had no idea that I would be lucky enough to grow an unquenchable thirst for all things outside our one-horse town and to be loved by a man who would be equally intrigued to experience the world….one place at a time.

The book lay dormant on a shelf for some time. Granted, I flipped through it here and there, but wasn’t in a place to really understand it’s potential. Again, the sands of time have taken the details from me, but sometime during college I looked through it again with a new lens. Maybe it was because I was more independent and searching for who I really wanted to be. Maybe it was simply because I had the means to go places I wanted to go, without permission. Really, it could have just been my over-organized personality and the rush I got from crossing accomplished items off a to-do list. This was the ultimate life to-do list: a challenge I was ready to ensconce myself in.

I made a plan to mark each of the 1,000 places with the date I visited and include a picture for proof. Honestly, this plan was truly rooted in a romantic vision littered with sentimentality. Unfortunately, I lost my grandparents before I could appreciate (and learn from) the rich experiences their lives had to offer. I really didn’t know them at all and I wish I could have. Someday I wish for my grandchildren to know me, if even after my death, and learn from the opportunities I have been blessed to experience. Ultimately, I want them to hear stories of grandeur and adventure and think, “Wow, she was cool!”

Here is how I see the vision playing out: A dusty attic filled with items once loved and then forgotten. A book, tattered and worn, wrapped in ribbon to hold the pages in order. Pages filled with exotic places, each one marked with a date in faded cursive. Between the pages are pictures of people, happy to pose in front of quintessential landmarks, breathtaking landscapes, or forgotten hot-dog stands. There is one common thread to the pictures: me (or fondly called “Grandma” by the archeologists of the book) and my favorite people. My grandchildren will see me surrounded by the people I loved and was lucky enough to share an adventure with. An essay on life and opportunity, through pictures and places.

In order to realize my vision, I have started early! I have owned three copies of 1000 Places to See Before You Die. There are a myriad of iterations, like 1000 Recordings to Hear Before You Die and 1000 Places to See in the U.S.A and Canada Before You Die, but I have stayed true to the original, believing that anything less would be lowering my expectations. I discovered the copy that will be the substance of my vision when I was about 26, living in New Jersey, and shopping at Restoration Hardware. It was a hard copy with a black leather cover. It was beautiful. I even smelled it to make sure it was real leather. The pages of the soft copies now get ripped out before an adventure as a reference tool, folded and soiled with the dirt of many countries.

That brings us to today, 12 days after learning that I will be moving to Freiburg im Breisgau, Germany with my husband. He has been accepted into the 2012 class of Olmsted Scholars, a program within the military that will provide us with an amazing opportunity to learn and study the language and culture of Germany, and travel the western European region. I feel blessed that his hard work and accomplishments within the military will allow us to take advantage of such a rich experience.

To date, I have only accomplished 83 of the 1,000 places listed, a mere 8%! Although I have always felt very well traveled for a 29 year-old, there is 92% of the world left to see! Here then begins my quest to add dates and pictures to the vision, chipping away at the to-do list of life travelers. Perhaps it was a mother’s intuition at the book store one day, knowing just the right book to choose for a daughter with a future not yet revealed. Perhaps it was the book itself, sparking small flames of restlessness to be fueled by westerlies. Either way, the journeys to come are dedicated to you MOM. My biggest fan and true supporter, in addition to a wonderful travel partner.