#61: I've Been Everywhere, Man

How New Places Teach New Perspectives

When I was a graduate assistant at Ball State University in Indiana, some of my favorite fringe benefits were the many impromptu discussions with undergrad students loitering in the journalism department’s student lounge.

I was 26-27 at the time, they were 18-22, but the difference in our years seemed far greater at that age.

Travel was a frequent topic, usually accompanied by students asking if I had been to specific places. By that time in my life, I had lived in Virginia, California and now Indiana, and had traveled through many U.S. cities and a couple of Caribbean islands.

The vast majority of those undergrads were native Hoosiers and had not traveled much. They were surprised at how many places I had visited, and asked questions about the cities and states they thought they might want to see one day.

One of those students was a focused, polite…