Open Letter to My Children: Trip Around the World

Below is the letter to my children as our trip around the world comes to an end soon. A personal letter with my reflections and hopes I have for my children. I decided to write this letter so they can look back years from now and have a greater understanding of my thoughts on our once in a lifetime trip around the world. As I finished writing it, I figured although it is deeply personal, others may be curious and want to understand too. This letter is for my children, and this mom cried and sniffled the entire time while I wrote this. Please enjoy!

May 23, 2018

Dear Luca & Sofia,

As I sit here at the park and watch you play, at this last stop on our trip around the world, I wanted to let you know about a few things that have come from this trip around the world. Our adventure of a lifetime!

First and foremost, how much I loved spending all day, every day with both of you. As I look forward with our lives together I am not sure if this will ever happen again. Our “regular” life will start again soon where you will be back in school and I will be back at work. And eventually, you will also be off living your own independent lives soon enough. Never again will I be able to spend every moment with you for this amount of time, and that was pretty special. I spent extra time reading your books, playing cards, making jokes and just enjoying being with you. This time with you was truly precious to me and something I never took for granted on this journey. 

I think you were the perfect ages to go on this trip. Although you were only 5 and 7 when we set out for this journey, what I loved the most was your innocence towards everything. You soaked up so much along the way and asked so many questions that mattered to you. Curious minds with a hunger to learn more. You were also more adaptable then I thought you would have been. Thank you for being good sports, going with the flow and trusting me. Being the ages you were, you won’t remember everything, but you do have memories that are important to you.

We pinched ourselves every day on our travels. Travelling and visiting so many places in the world was remarkable to share with you. We discovered so many new wonderful places together, with neither one of us knowing what was around the corner. The experiences are what seems to stand out to me, when we tried something new, challenged ourselves and took advantage of the opportunity we had. You both pushed me to do things I would never have thought was possible.

We had a lot of FUN along the way. Every day wasn’t perfect, there were some grumpy, angry, and frustrating times. You guys pushed each other’s buttons and fought as siblings do, but in the end, you two became closer to each other. You were pals, best friends and have each others back. Never lose that bond with each other. We all giggled, acted like goofballs and have so many inside jokes to laugh about together. We have stories and memories we will talk about for years to come. I will cherish all of those memories forever. 

I feel your world just got a lot smaller. And I am excited to see as you grow older how much impact this trip around the world has had on your life. I hope your exposure to 23 other countries helps you understand that there is so much to learn from other people and places in this world. I hope you have realized that inside everyone person is same and deserves the same respect, happiness, and love. We only have one world that we need to take care of. 

Although this was my dream, to travel around the world with you both, I hope you realize that dreams can come true. Anything is possible, but it’s going to take some work. You have to make it happen with hard work, dedication, and perseverance. You are the only one that can make your dreams happen. Dream BIG and never stop chasing what you truly want from your life. Have faith that you can choose your path and live your life the way you want to.

When you look back years from now and wonder why your crazy mom decided to take you around the world, know I wanted to live my life without regrets. I had the time of my life with you both on this adventure, and it was better than I could have ever imagined it would be. Many people we met along the way, asked if you both knew how lucky you kids were to travel around the world. Know that we were blessed to be able to make this adventure happen. Always be grateful for this journey around the world. We have so many more adventures ahead for us, but for right now let’s just enjoy this moment.

I love you to the moon and back… and all around the world. 

Love,

Mom