Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
that first mask in London—the mask of playing it safe—and made my away across Amer-
ica on $5 a day, I learned that there were still many masks hiding beneath. And then one
afternoon I found myself walking down Hollywood Boulevard, and my whole life changed
. . . again.
I had gone out to lunch and was walking back to my car when it happened. The palm
trees stood out in the distance; the sun beat down on the star-lined sidewalk; and then I saw
him. He was sitting by an over-packed grocery cart with a dirty baseball cap on his head,
torn jeans, and a grime-stained face. But in his hands, the homeless man held a sign that
stopped me dead in my tracks. Some people might call these moments turning points. I am
one of those people. And I'm always aware when they happen. It's as though the world
comes to a standstill, the orchestra of sounds and words and cars and life fade into a quiet
hum, and the moment gets etched so deeply into my memory, I can always feel it right
there, under my skin. My face softened as I read the sign in the homeless man's hands. It
said, “Kindness is the best medicine.”
Here's the funny thing about getting everything you
think
you want. You always want
more. But for me, I didn't want more money or more fame. Throughout my previous
“amazing adventures,” I had gotten a taste of connecting with people in a way I never
thought possible. I had made friendships. Real, deep friendships. Our connections were
based on more than where we lived or what we did for work; they were about two humans
trying to make it through this crazy world. Together.
I realized that I was missing the one thing that had brought me here: connecting with
people through the language of kindness. And I don't just mean big, life-changing, “Whoa,
did that just happen?” kindness. I also mean the small whispers, the quiet reminders that
happen every day when people drop their masks and reveal their hearts. This river of kind-
ness flows through each and every one of us, connecting us.
Because kindness is more than just medicine. The act of giving and receiving is where
the real magic of human connection occurs. It happens when people move past the mono-
tonous bullshit of what we do for work or how we feel about the weather, and into our
private interior worlds—or as some people call them, our souls—to connect with one an-
other and to heal. And I wanted more of it. Much, much more. What I discovered on my
previous walk across America was that there is a rare and magnificent magic that happens
when a stranger walks into town. Humans want to know about each other. They want to
connect. So I figured what better way to find that magic again than by embarking on a mis-
sion of kindness around the world?
