There was a time when I struggled to make eye contact with people. As a child, I was so shy that on my first day of school, I hid under a chair. I remember sitting there quietly, watching the room and waiting until it felt safe enough to emerge. For years, I carried that fear with me. Crowded rooms made me uncomfortable. Speaking to strangers felt like a performance. I worried about saying the wrong thing, being judged, or somehow revealing that I wasn't confident enough. The

I was watching the kitchen clock tick down with a zoo full of butterflies threatening to burst out of my stomach at any minute. In truth, I had been looking forward to this expedition for months. Still, it was a mix of excitement and nervousness as I checked my passport for the eighth time. There is something terrifying and also liberating about travel. It is not only that you step out of your usual routine. You burst the bubble of your own reality and step bravely into a new