The Itch...

          So, as I sit here in the airport, practically falling asleep in my chair like an exhausted toddler, I once again feel the itch within me for adventure. The funny thing is, it took up until now to feel it again. See, this all started about 2 months ago, when I found myself at my (at that time 3 month in) "new" job (since ending the 2 month road trip across the U.S.), when I was sitting attentively writing a "very important" e-mail to a peer of mine. Alone in the back room, I leaned back to give my eyes a rest, and as I looked up at the ceiling, I noticed a lizard sitting very still. Yea, I know, random, but there was literally a lizard on the ceiling. I was fixated on how it just stayed completely still as if attempting to blend in to the blandness of the egg shell shade of white panels. For minutes, I just sat there, staring at it, and I thought, I have never seen a lizard on the ceiling before, let alone at work. As I chuckled and bent my neck back to look at my screen, the 3 paragraph explanation that I had prepared was suddenly swept away by an unexpected "Force Close" by the magnificent machine we call a PC.

          At this point, any of us would be distraught to have this happen, but I just sighed at the unfortunate dilemma and went right back at admiring the lizard. It was at this exact point that I felt the "itch". It crept upon me slowly right between my eyes, as if to tell me to take off the figurative glasses I had to put on to live in the "real world." Once off, I felt I didn't understand how I was getting sucked in again.  Into the idea that the seat that I am currently imprinting is my true calling. Although I have been working hard and don't attempt to be mediocre, this was not what my life needs me to do. Like the lizard, I was attempting to blend into something that didn't make sense for me, a bland, egg shelled background. I bet it didn't think it would be stranded on ceiling of some office building surrounded by gigantic monsters doing crazy dances and speaking noises, noises that even if it understood english, would still sound odd to him (thanks to accents and mostly nonsense).

         All this going through my mind, I felt the itch moving towards my chest, at which point I felt a sense of hollowness come upon me. Why am I settling once again? What is it that my heart really wants from me? If I look back at my life and I found out that tomorrow was the end, what would I really have to show for it? What would I have failed at? What would I have learned? We all think of it at one point or another, some more than others, and some put it off because of other things that cloud their hungry minds, but for me, it was an all too eerie feeling. You see, like you, my readers, my friends and family don't quite understand my hunger for experience. I have always thrown myself to the wolves to see if I'd survive, or jumped in the deep end to see if I'd float, or driven on E to see how far I'd get (ok so I made up the last one but you get my point), so why aren't I doing that with my life now?

          With that feeling, I took a look around and saw my life as if it was a still painting, and just like those pieces of art, there are always things the jump out can create deeper though. For example, I have 3 friends of mine who are avid travelers, and without ever expressing my view they come to speak to me about their inner struggle with life and how we are formed to think the way we do. How life isn't all about staying put and feeling comfortable. This is scary thought even for me and as I press my finger into every button I feel the cold chill come down my spine thinking that I can leave it all behind someday. Then I thought about a commitment that I made to myself at the beginning of the year, about seeing much of the world before I turn 30, and what huge leaps I have made thus far. How, before I go overseas, I wanted to see North America for what it was. This is where the itch went to the top of my head and I came up with the brightest idea in quite some time and why, 2 months later, I am sitting in this airport, partially drooling as I type this. Let me finish that commitment to myself, let me see what it is again to see beauty in the unknown rather than fear, let me know that if I can dream it, it can happen. So here I am, my zone was just called to board, as if asking me one last time if I really want to do this, and I just gave them my boarding pass. Hello again, Kenneth, lets see where your heart takes us again...

The Community Made Of Us - Trailers

          Its been a little over 5 months since I began this blog and this journey to find, "The Community: Made of Us" and I can honestly say I have learned quite a lot. Meeting people from all walks of life and all over the United States, there is never a dull moment during my travels. Whether it was taking a shot with a live fish in it, to hiking to the highest point in L.A. there was always room to take my next trip further.

          Even with that being said, I have been working on a short film documenting the past few months of my life's travels and I must say it has taken me longer to put this together than I have expected. Nevertheless, every time I take a look at my "work in progress" I can't help to remember why I started this journey and where I though it would take me. Unsure of what lay ahead of me in the next few months, or where I would be in the next few years.

          Not everything in this world is a sign, nor does everything have a purpose, sometimes, things just...are. What we make of it is a manifestation of what we want, and what we want is a product of our own minds. This kind of mindset keeps me focused on what I plan to do with my life, although I don't know the details just yet, I know where I want to go. Just like any other Floridian in a summer rainstorm, you may not see the lines, but you can still see the road.

          So, to commemorate my soon to be finished, "work in progress" I made the 3rd and final trailer for my project. I also included the links to my first two trailers if you wanted to check them out! Be sure to leave comments on the videos! (Be sure to put them in HD!)

Link to Trailer 3

Link to Trailer 2

Link to Trailer 1

Looking Back Thus Far...

My face at the beginning of "The Community Made of Us"

          So, after quitting my job, selling most of my belongings, and traveling the U.S. for  a month and a half. I have finally made it back to my family in Orlando. Driving over nine thousand miles, eating anything from raw sweet potatoes to amazing home cooked meals, and even sleeping in the freezing cold to having an apartment to myself a block from the beach, I have no words to sum up such an experience, what I felt, who I met, and how in the heck I made those long hour drives without going crazy (haha). This project I call," The Community Made of Us" is not just about me and my journey, but rather the people that I met along the way. 

My mother and I riding the sun rail for the first time in Orlando, FL

Hanging with my new friend Isaiah on Highway 1 on California's coast

Hanging out with the spanish fruit gang in Charleston, SC

The tiny sober dinosaur from L.A.

          From the Atlantic to the Pacific ocean and every lake in between I found myself in a different situation ever time. Looking back at the beginning of this trip, I remember thinking what people would think when I told them what I've done. What would I do after I finish the trip? Will "The Community Made of Us" really become something greater? Would this idea of community even catch on? And yet I never thought I would receive the support that I have thus far. People that I never expected to hear from have told me how inspired they've become, how the look at ideas like this and appreciate what they mean. Still, I couldn't help but to feel odd when I arrived back home in Orlando.  After such an amazing trip, I was back to reality, and responsibility, but that wasn't the issue. 

Hanging out with Ru, Ivan, and Bar in Savannah after I just met them earlier in Savannah, GA

Marley's Collie live at Tanquray's in Downtown Orlando, FL

Hanging with my friend Kelly on International Drive in Orlando, FL

Having a little seat in Balboa Park, San Diego, CA

          I arrived home to with a feeling of sadness and anxiety. First off is how I can get back to my normal routine and to the security that I once held so high on my life's pedestal? After about a week of aimlessly wandering and emotionally playing a tug of war inside, I reminded myself of the reason I made this journey in the first place. To create the connections with people that I would have otherwise never have done before. To help make a difference in others lives and show them that our desires and what we can achieve is as possible as they can imagine it. That when you are unhappy at what your doing, make the plan to get yourself on the right path, and execute it. After I realized this, I soon felt the sadness within me, turn into my passion, and thus creating an emotional alchemy within myself.

 Hanging with my best friend Valentina, and her little sister Jenny in Charlotte, NC

Cool girl Emily and I making faces in Albuquerque, NM

Frisbee golfing at the park with some new friends in L.A.

Conner the Bear at the bar with Shawna dancing on the side in Nashville, TN

          So, now I find myself creating a basis for myself in order to continue this story of community. I can't help but to feel as though the memories I made can't be out done, but like I said before, this is only the beginning, and there's a whole world out there to see. So to give you a little taste of my experiences and some of the situations I found myself in with strangers, that became my friends, that later became part of this greater community, here are some of my favorite photos from along my trip. There is still much to tell, and as I settle in to make my next big leap, I am busy, editing my first film project, planning for my next adventure, and looking for the best moment to take that leap of faith once more. Thank you again and hope to see you around, wherever you are...

Ornella, a Peruvian from NJ, and Kenny, a Peruvian from NJ hanging out at Little Hong Kong in Arlington, TX

Goofing around with Callie in Phoenix, AZ

Somewhere in the Middle of Arkansas lol

Children that I sold some candy with in East L.A., CA

My friend Amanda riding a hog in downtown Asheville, NC

       

         Stay tuned to check out more posts as I continue my adventures, and check out the trailers to the small film I am making below. Use the hashtag #MadeOfUs, repost the video on your pages, and remember, it doesn't take much to be part of The Community, when someone helps you, make sure you pass it on.

The Community: Made of Us (Trailer)
and

The Community: Made of Us (Trailer 2)

Follow and support, "The Community Made of Us" here:

Facebook.com/TheCommunityMadeOfUs

Instagram:@TheCommunityMadeOfUs

Twitter:     @TCMadeOfUs