The MN Hosteller

Beyond the Atlas

by Heather DeAtley

"It is a sad fate for a man to die too well known to everyone else
and still unknown to himself." -Francis Bacon

Open any page in the index of my National Geographic Atlas, and you will find a series of highlighted entries, dated with short reference notes written in the margins. Over the course of the past eight years, this has been my record of a world that never ceases to amaze, astound, and fascinate me, even if only on paper. Within these pages lies an archive of places I've read or dreamed of, hoped to travel to, spoken to others of- in short, the very seeds of my hopes and dreams in making sense of a world far beyond what I've known. This Atlas has been my loyal companion, my quiet confidant in discovering my passion for the world, its people, its vastness.

With every entry, I forged a connection, not only to the world, but with myself. Each turn of the page, every finger outlining the contours of places foreign to me, I've claimed pieces of myself. What began with an occasional entry has become a daily discipline, with sometimes more than a dozen locations looked up. So began my quiet dialogue with humanity, with each location a point of entry for better understanding the world we live in.

Why do I travel? I travel to step beyond the two dimensions of my Atlas and into the reality of human connections. I travel to defend myself against ignorance and complacency, to honor humility, and the intrigue of this world.

My four years in Minneapolis have invited real opportunities for me to be in honest dialogue with myself. Renting my first apartment on my own provided a gateway into this deeper understanding of the relationship I wish to have with the world, and myself. My travels have taken me to the Bahamas, France, England and throughout the US in fits and starts, always returning to this apartment as my home base--a safe, beautiful pot from which to grow in and from. This apartment and the rituals I've created while living here have settled and grounded me, strengthening my connection to and trust in myself.

I find the time rapidly approaching in which I will comfortably be able to let these four walls fall away. In their place, a new home strapped to my back...my feet carrying me through, over, and around what I've only known on paper.