Roadtrip for Wellness

TEXT by Katherine Oakes & Celeste Noche | PHOTOGRAPHS by CELESTE NOCHE

[IMAGE-11]

—This feature is an excerpt.

To read the full-length feature in all it's splendor, subscribe to Pure Green.

WHEN WE THINK OF WELLNESS AS SOMETHING THAT NOURISHES OUR BODY AND MIND, THEN SURELY WE MUST ALSO CONSIDER THE NOURISHMENT OF OUR SOUL. For many, this nourishment can be found on the road, across the world, on an unbeaten path—in short: while travelling. “You’re traveling in order to be moved”, the internationally-acclaimed writer Pico Iyer once said. “And really what you're seeing is not just the Grand Canyon or the Great Wall but some moods or intimations or places inside yourself that you never ordinarily see when you're sleepwalking through your daily life.” So what is moved if not that most familiar part of our self, and what are those canyons and walls but mirrors that reflect those facets of our self back to us? Perhaps, one of the most generous things travel has to offer is that the unfamiliarity of a new place or perspective can bring to light our deepest fears, wants, needs, and misgivings. And because of that we are never more fully ourselves than when we are in a place we don’t call home.

[IMAGE-10]

True sustenance is found in the space where limits are tested and our boundaries are stretched. What can nourish our soul the most is to learn how to eloquently respond to the awkward and sometimes uncomfortable questions that our travels pose to us. As we learn how to navigate these sometimes murky waters with humility, candor, and grace, we may find that travel, in any capacity, cultivates a greater form of overall wellbeing. It reminds us to stay curious, connected, and hungry for knowledge of a world outside our own. It reminds us to embrace the depth and richness that these other worlds have to offer, and that the application of our robust and capable selves can be the greatest affirmation of holistic living.

[IMAGE-9]

Therefore, we should keep in mind that it is a healthy habit to wander off from time to time and explore the world around us. If for no other reason than to stoke a sense of wide-eyed wonderment that will keep us close to the earth, close to each other, and close to our self. To be bitten by the travel bug, as the saying goes, may not be a sickness so much as a remedy, if ultimately it leads you back to who you are.

[IMAGE-1]

Few can attest better to this theory than avid-traveler and photojournalist Celeste Noche, whose short series of narratives and photos of life on the road speak accurately to the understanding that sometimes travel, is in fact the best kind of medicine (see link below to read about Celeste's roadtrip).

ABOUT OUR CONTRIBUTORS

KATHERINE OAKES, Introduction: Katherine is a green living and lifestyle writer who has written for Pure Green Magazine, Food52, Mother Mag, Modernize, Freja Daily, and West Elm. She also blogs regularly at The Basic Goods. Based out of Northern New Jersey with the moutains, ocean, and rugged island of Manhattan all within reach, she enjoys summitting snowy peaks with or without skis and surfing an offshore breeze whenever possible. View her work, and follow her on Instagram.

CELESTE NOCHE, Photographs & Narrative: Celeste is a wedding and editorial photographer based in Portland, Oregon, and San Francisco. Before anything, she is a storyteller. Whether it's a weekend in a foreign city or your wedding day (or both!), her goal is to share the people and moments that create the story. View her work, follow her on Instagram.