I've always dreamed of traveling the world, but like so many others, I ended up on choosing to follow a career path instead of following my dream. I founded a company that I loved. Everything changed when I broke up with my girlfriend.
Sadness pushed me to my breaking point. It took me around three months after the break-up to finally make the decision to leave and travel the world. It was one of the hardest things I had ever done, but it was also the best choice I ever made in my life.
To this day, I still remember the day I called my parents, who are also deaf, to discuss my plans to travel the world. Both of my parents gave me their full support. They told me to go ahead and helped book my flight to Thailand.
I chose Southeast Asia as my first, and I was fortunate to spend it with my good friend Mic Dolan. We spent about six weeks backpacking through Thailand, Vietnam, and Cambodia, having fun with tiger cubs and riding elephants. There was a new adventure every day. We paused long enough in Thailand to get certified in scuba diving, which turned out to be my favorite part. After that trip, I flew to Europe to meet another friend, John Hathaway. In this part of the journey, John and I turned our travels into a full-time adventure and we shared all of our stories on the Vlog platform Seek The World.
Showing the people that I met and my readers who I am makes me more confident with-what I want for my life. After meeting many deaf people, I realized that I have done one thing that everybody wants to do: I'm reaching my dream by breaking down communication barrier (障碍) and overcoming different challenges. I always find a way. And I always make things happen. I didn't do that in the past; I'm grateful that I do now.