Why I Travel

People often ask me where my favorite place is, what my next trip will be, or how many states I've visited. The truth is, travel has never really been about checking places off a list.

My love for travel started when I was young. When I was around 12 years old, my parents sent me on a trip by myself to visit family in Georgia and Florida. It was my first time flying, and by the end of that summer I had been on seven different flights. For a kid from Iowa, it felt like an entirely different world.

During that trip, I saw the Atlantic Ocean for the first time, stood on the shores of the Gulf of Mexico, explored swamps filled with wild alligators, went boogie boarding, got stung by jellyfish, and spent my days running around Florida catching lizards and chameleons with my cousins. At the time, it all felt normal. Looking back, I realize those experiences opened my eyes to a much bigger world than the one I knew at home.

That same summer, after returning home, my dad, my younger brother Robby, and I headed west. We visited places like Mount Rushmore, Crazy Horse, and Devils Tower, spent time trout fishing in the Rocky Mountains, and saw landscapes that looked like they belonged in a postcard. Those trips planted a seed that never really went away. They made me realize there was more to life than one state, and I wanted to experience everything the rest of the country had to offer.

I've always enjoyed bringing pictures to life. There is something special about standing somewhere you've only seen in photographs and realizing you're actually there. Whether it's a mountain range, a canyon, a famous landmark, or a stretch of coastline, seeing it with your own eyes is completely different than seeing it on a screen.

Over the years, travel has taken me to places and experiences I never would have imagined as a kid. I've completed the SkyJump from the Stratosphere in Las Vegas, zip lined across the Royal Gorge on the highest zip line in North America, explored the Everglades by airboat, sandboarded down giant dunes, fed wolves, held alligators, and stood in places I once only knew from photographs. Some experiences were exciting, some were peaceful, and some simply left me standing there appreciating where I was.

What I love most is being able to say I've done something rather than simply saying I've been somewhere.

The places are memorable, but the experiences are what stick with me.

While I enjoy traveling alone from time to time, especially when I want to fully soak in a place and experience it at my own pace, the trips I value most are the ones shared with family and close friends. Some of my favorite memories came from standing on top of the Great Sand Dunes in Colorado with my family, exploring a new city with my best friends, taking the scenic route instead of the fastest one, or spending hours laughing and talking during long drives between destinations.

Travel also gives me something I don't get at home: something new. I've spent most of my life in Iowa, and while I'll always consider it home, there's a certain excitement that comes from seeing a place you've never seen before, meeting people you never expected to meet, and experiencing things you didn't even know existed.

I don't travel because I need to escape my life. I genuinely enjoy my work and the people I get to help every day. But I also believe it's important to make time for the things you're passionate about. I spend much of my life helping others, both professionally and personally, and travel gives me an opportunity to invest in experiences, challenge myself, and continue exploring what the world has to offer.

Travel isn't something that was handed to me. It's something I've chosen to prioritize. I've always believed in investing in experiences because they stay with you long after the trip is over. Years from now, I probably won't remember most of the things I've bought, but I'll remember the places I've been, the things I've done, and the people who shared those experiences with me.

That's why I travel.

Not to check boxes.

Not to impress anyone.

But to experience life, create memories, and continue discovering what else is out there.