Chattanooga Pulse

Written by Dr. Rick Pimental-Habib, Ph.D
Tuesday, 30 September 2008 21:52
Sometimes the journey is the reason for the journey

I have recently crossed paths with two friends, both in the midst of a walkabout. For those of you unfamiliar with this practice, a “walkabout,” as defined by Wikipedia, is “an Australian term referring to the commonly held belief that Australian aborigines would ‘go walkabout’ at the age of thirteen in the wilderness for six months as a rite of passage. In this practice they would trace the paths that their people’s ceremonial ancestors took, and imitate, in a fashion, their heroic deeds.”

My friends are doing their own modern-day version of a walkabout. Though what they’re doing is perhaps more accurately called a “driveabout,” they are nonetheless on a free-spirited adventure. They’re reconnecting with themselves, and their internal universe, by connecting with external experiences far beyond the boundaries of the busy lives they’ve created for themselves. Both are professionals, and this traveling sabbatical is a way to renew the spirit, feed the soul, meet interesting people and have unusual experiences. They have made a commitment to personal enrichment and intellectual discovery. Wherever their journeys may lead, I have no doubt they will be much-remembered milestones in the bigger journey of their lives.