Life today feels louder, faster, and harder to filter than ever before. Even those of us who avoid constant news feeds and endless scrolling find ourselves pulled into the chaos. But is calm still something we can choose, or has it become a luxury we have to fight for? In this reflection, Leigh William shares a family journey across Europe that revealed a rare sense of peace, only to be met with the world’s mounting tension at every stop. The question that lingers is simple yet pressing: can we still carve out calm in a world addicted to noise?

You don’t need proof to walk away—just a feeling that something isn’t right. After decades of travel and sailing with strangers, I’ve learned that the most important safety tool I carry is my own intuition. In this post, I share the personal safety standards I’ve practiced for years, and how they helped me navigate a recent situation that could have turned dangerous. If you travel solo or sail with new crews, this one's for you.

👉 Read: Personal Safety Standards for Travelers

What if we all carried our lives in a backpack,
The way weary travelers do,
Waiting in queues for hours
To reunite with loved ones,
Only to leave with a lingering sadness,
After a brief gathering that only partly fills the emptiness
Of a mother grown old,
Aged by her children becoming adults,
Meeting at gate 1F,
Where time is both a journey and a reminder.

As I begin packing for our upcoming trip to Malaga, Spain, I find myself reflecting on the rituals of cleansing and preparing for new experiences. It’s interesting how the process of packing for sunshine feels different than the usual post-holiday cleanup. After months of overcast skies, I feel an overwhelming need to escape the grayness and embrace the warmth and light that Malaga promises. There’s something healing about sunlight, about feeling the fresh air after days of dreary weather. But beyond the practicalities of travel, I’m reminded that the distractions—like flight prices and logistics—are just a way of avoiding the deeper questions that my soul is longing to answer. As we embark on this journey, I know that the real transition I seek is not just geographical, but personal.