A humbling insight...
I have a quick, fun question for you.
Can you guess one of my top hobbies?
For you it might be listening to music, cooking a delicious meal, or maybe watching a movie.
Mine is kind of odd. Ready for it?
It’s looking up (cheap) flight tickets (!)
Why? Cause traveling is one of my highest values. Traveling connects me to my loved ones and allows me to go n’between home-like-spaces around the world.
It brings me such joy to be able to connect to different parts of myself through travels, to express myself in different languages, eat different foods, and feel myself…
So guess what I’m doing right now?
:)
I’ve been traveling for almost two weeks. I attended one of my closest friend’s weddings in Armenia and then added a few extra stops.
Here is my a-ha during this trip:
Traveling humbles me.
It’s like this emoji → saying “Duuh Nora, that’s NOT how ‘everyone’ does it.”
Traveling allows me to see how small I am in the world, AND it challenges my belief systems, the way I *think* things should be, the ways I get arrogant or narrow-minded.
It's even in the tiny little things. Example: How do you serve water at a restaurant?
In the US, the water glass is waiting for you at the table with millions of ice cubes before you even sit down. In Armenia, water is barely served and when it is it’s always in 0.50l bottles. In France you’ve got to make sure you request "carafe d'eau" or you'll end up paying.
There is no right way to serve water.
We do things according to what we most value. There is no "right way."
Traveling is often romanticized. Eating good food, experiencing stunning landscapes, seeing new architecture, hearing beautiful languages, listening to lively music, making new connections…
AND it can be extremely stressful, confusing, and take a lot of emotional capacity.
Despite all of this, what I love the most is that it allows my n’betweener brain to expand and switch between many perspectives and experiences.
It allows that forehead slap - to check myself and realize there is not one way things should be.
So here is WHY this is important:
Because sometimes we can get in our own way as n’betweeners. We can hold a narrow view on how things “should” be, and miss out on seeing the bigger picture.
In reality we n’betweeners are like birds, we have a unique birds-eye view.
Let me break it down.
Here are your n’betweener gifts:
You have the ability to shift between environments. You code-switch. This grants you the gift of understanding multiple perspectives at once.
You can adapt to various climates. You learn to combat oppression just as birds learn to weather the storms they fly through.
You put yourself in the shoes of others. Your compassion is genuine and beautiful. You may soar high in the sky, but you know in your body the experience of flying low.
You’re able to feel nuances in your surroundings. You notice things other people don’t notice. Like a bird, you are intuitive and can innately feel the changes in your environment.
Take in your superpowers, n’betweener.
To live your best n’betweener life means to allow yourself to see your strengths.
More on this in next week’s email. Make sure to sign up for my newsletter below so you don’t miss it! :)
Much love,
Nora