wanderlust

[won-der-luhst]

Phonetic (Standard)IPA

noun

a strong, innate desire to rove or travel about.

Wanderlust: The Art of Filling the Creative Well

There’s something sacred about stepping off a plane in a new city — there is an instantaneous stream of novelty, and the rhythm of the streets hums its own language which my ears strain to understand. For me, travel is not just an escape. It’s a return — to curiosity, to wonder, to the parts of myself that get buried under to-do lists and routines of being a mom, a wife, a therapist, and a photographer.

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Anthony Bourdain once said, “Travel isn’t always pretty. It isn’t always comfortable. But that’s okay. The journey changes you — it should change you.”
As someone who travels alone sometimes, but also experiences some anxiety for those trips well before I start packing, I’ve carried those words like a compass. Because every journey — whether it’s across the ocean or a simple drive down a new road — reshapes me. It cracks something open inside, pours light into the places that feel dull, and reminds me how vast and beautiful this world really is.

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The clink of espresso cups in an Italian café. The way late-afternoon light kisses cobblestones. The warmth of connection as I observe friends, families and couples that needs no translation. These moments refill my creative well — they remind me what it means to see, to feel, to notice. And when I return home, I am renewed.

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This month I turn the calendar page and see a little block of dates set aside for an upcoming adventure. I’ll pack my camera first. Journals second.

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Stay tuned here and on Instagram and Substack at @lifelensandlove for some sneak peeks about where I am headed and what I see along the way.

If you too have travels planned this month for holidays or otherwise, Buon viaggio.

Take care,

Gina

+++ Gina Graham is a photographer who captures special moments in time such as maternity, new motherhood, milestones, senior portraits, and empowerment in Chicago and the Western Suburbs in Illinois. When Gina is not obsessing over creating natural and emotive portraits, she is likely dreaming up a trip. For more info, circle back to lifelensandlove.com.