An ounce of home

Daily Prompt at WordPress :  An Ounce of Home

You’re embarking on a yearlong round-the-world adventure, and can take only one small object with you to remind you of home. What do you bring along for the trip?

I saw this prompt today and I knew I had to blog on this topic. Yearlong round-the-world adventure is something that I have been yearning to do, but never had the courage to embark on it alone.

If I am going on such a trip, I would want to capture some photos using my camera and make notes in a journal on where we went or what we did. In our recent trip to Yellowstone, I started writing the happenings of the day in a small journal so as to preserve the memories. I will either put those points on this blog of mine or into a scrapbook to preserve those memories forever. But they are definitely not the only things that I would like to carry. I can always come back from my adventure and jot them down in a journal later. Most of the times when I am travelling, I do not have the time and patience to make notes. Also, there have been times when I have left my camera at home, just so that I can take delight in the moments without swinging my heavy camera on my shoulder.

Nope, these two will not accompany me on my journey.

I, then, thought of my smart phone. That will have photos, can take new photos, can act as a journal, can do everything that my laptop can do and it is a small object. But then I remembered a recent article that I read in National Geographic magazine about how one of the travel journalists had to spend some time in a small cannibal village in New Guinea where there was no electricity or cell phone signal. What if I end up in a place like that, as part of my adventure? What if there is no electricity to even recharge my phone?

No, I am not carrying a cell phone with me.

Next thing that came to my mind was a photo. But then I am not a person who looks at photographs often. The people I love are always on my mind and I keep thinking about them whether I look at their photos or not.

Photos are not really necessary to remind me of my home.

Source: Wikimedia

Then what is it, you ask? I will carry a map of the world, of my home country, of my town, of my street. Looking at the map should remind me of everything that I have been missing.

This map will help me in not getting lost.

This map will make sure I make it back home safely.

This map will help me in exploring the world.

This map will make sure that I seek everything that I have wanted to see in this world.

This map will be the only object that I will carry with me.