Friendship and faith in a new season of life<\/h3>\n
We met on a medical mission in the Zambian bush in our late 50s. Sandy was a volunteer doctor, stepping out of her comfort zone to give her grandkid a purposeful, once-in-a-lifetime adventure. Ellie was one of the Directors of the mission, working in a country and in a role that she\u2019d never have imagined for herself growing up as a kid.<\/p>\n
![\"\"](\"https:\/\/healthyaging.net\/magazine\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/SE-Depart-for-Around-the-World-750.jpg\")
<\/a>Departing for around the world<\/p><\/div>\n
Working together, we admired each other very much. But we didn\u2019t become best friends until we both found ourselves as widows in our 60s\u2014entering a phase of life without our partners, realizing we made great travel buddies, and examining closely the values that would keep us going through a new season of life.<\/p>\n
For each of us, our faith has always been the beacon that led us toward meaning. (It\u2019s no surprise we met on a service trip!) But as we sat together, newly single ladies playing Farkle and drinking coffee, we began to realize that tenets of our shared faith might also give us a unique way to reinvigorate our sense of adventure, our desire to lean into life, and to give us something to balance the pain of our grief.<\/p>\n
<\/a>Everest Flight on Buddha Air<\/p><\/div>\n
Bringing Your Whole Self to the Journey<\/h3>\n
As kids, we (and many people of many different faiths) learn that to truly love God, we\u2019ve got to do so with our total being. You can\u2019t just pay lip service to your values. You\u2019ve got to find a way to engage your heart, brain, body, and soul. Through our travels, we\u2019ve come to see that to squeeze every bit of juice from the adventure and the gift of aging, you\u2019ve got to do it with your total being. We\u2019ve found that the project of being present with your total being can make traveling more meaningful, as well as inspire you to be braver.<\/p>\n
When we think about where to travel, we look for places that will make us feel something deeply\u2014a zap, a thrill, a way to access our awe. This is one of the reasons we like train travel so much, and why Sandy is always ready to chip in and help Ellie with her photography equipment: capturing a blur through the smudged window of the Trans-Siberian Railroad or getting up early to catch sunrise at the Pyramids will move you deeply.<\/p>\n
There is a reason that generations of humans have sent postcards during their travels: these vistas, these wonders of the world, evoke deep feelings, and so we seek destinations that will give us that hit of profound emotion.<\/p>\n
<\/a>Husky Sleigh Ride Lapland<\/p><\/div>\n
Facing Aging\u2019s Realities with Courage<\/h3>\n
One of the harsh realities of aging is that you can\u2019t ignore your body: We\u2019d planned a trip to Papua New Guinea, and in the lead-up, it became clear that Sandy was going to need a hip replacement. That was a step we couldn\u2019t ignore, but mapping out and committing to the physical therapy became a much clearer goal when she knew that getting stronger meant keeping the trip with Ellie on the books.\nTravel is a much more enticing goal than just knowing that exercise or mobility work is the \u201cright\u201d thing to do, or the doctor\u2019s orders. Set your sights on a bigger goal to help get you through the sweat needed to reach it.<\/p>\n
It\u2019s also no secret that aging means getting up more in the night\u2014and if you\u2019re going to rough it, step out of your comfort zone, that also means sometimes choosing accommodations (say, a Bedouin tent or an off-the-grid village in the jungle fjords of the Solomon Sea that only has outhouses). But here is where you\u2019ve got to use your mind to decide to say yes instead of succumbing to uncertainty and saying no.<\/p>\n
Instead of seeing these new realities of your body as a wall you can\u2019t get around, make a plan now so you can say yes\u2014and make facing that challenge a part of your memories. You might find yourself feeling your way to the outhouse in a wild place when you\u2019d rather be cozy in bed. But look up: No one except the nanas who have to trek to the bathroom will see such an amazing night sky.<\/p>\n
<\/a>Monkey Park Bali<\/p><\/div>\n
Feeding the Soul Through Connection<\/h3>\n
Finally, traveling can truly feed your soul\u2014and feeding your soul is the key to making new connections that will lead you to grow and become more fearless. When we travel, we also look for the meaning in each place.<\/p>\n
For Sandy, our trip to Papua, New Guinea, meant finally seeing the landscape where a favorite uncle had been a missionary. For Ellie, a stopover in Beijing on the way to Shanghai meant seeing an old student who\u2019d moved abroad. Getting our luggage stuck in Damascus and needing to ask a stranger for help decoding the method to unlock the locker led to coffee with his whole family.<\/p>\n
When you choose to bring your soul into your travels, you naturally slow down. And slowing down creates the space to connect with others, with the people who live where you\u2019re going or who are perhaps on a pilgrimage like your own. And it\u2019s those unexpected connections and soulful recollections that will truly open you.<\/p>\n
<\/a>World End Ushuaia<\/p><\/div>\n
When we meet people on our travels, or talk to groups about our travels, we\u2019re inevitably asked, what\u2019s your secret? We sure wish that falling in love with each season of life were something as easy to share as a secret. What we\u2019ve learned about finding the value of aging is to embrace each year with the reverence and complexity you\u2019d bring to other sacred relationships in your life: your children, your spouse, your best friend, your faith.<\/p>\n
When we plan our travel together, we look for places that will call on us to engage our mind, body, spirit, and soul. Because we know that when we intentionally bring our total being to the project, we\u2019ll find the joy, invigoration, vivid vistas, and surprising twists that will keep us young.<\/p>\n