About Me – Merlyn Crowley
Welcome to the Travel Journal blog! If you’re here, you’re obviously someone who loves to travel and explore, or you enjoy reading about the natural wonders of our world. Well if you are, you’ve come to the right place! So, let me share a little more about myself and my blog.
The Travel Journal was started as a way for me to share my experiences with travel and adventure to others who want to see the world like me. Whether you find inspiration in the places I post about, or enjoy reading about my adventures, the Travel Journal hopes to build a comfortable and supportive community of explorers.
On my past adventures, I’ve discovered how beautiful the world can be. The beauty in nature. The beauty in people. The beauty in architecture. And I just want to share this beauty with everyone who needs to see it. In the past, either the far or recent past, I feel we haven’t been able to appreciate the world’s natural wonder. Whether that’s because of the epidemic, the ongoing struggle for minority rights, violent crimes, or even personal battles, it’s been really hard for people to find joy in adventure and travel. I want to bring this joy back into people’s lives, as well as my own.
How the Travel Journal Started
As a youngster I always loved writing, mostly fantasy short stories but I dabbled in some creative history writing. When I heard about a short story or fifty word writing contests at my school I’d enter all of them, but I found writing about what I enjoyed was so much more fulfilling than sticking to a prompt. So I kept writing my stories. My journals. My experiences.
I’m sure you’ll learn more about me through my future blog posts, like my love, well let’s call it what it really is, obsession for animals. I couldn’t tell you how many stuffed animals I have at the moment, and the collection keeps growing and growing. You’ll also notice that most of the images in my posts are taken by me, because I also share an interest in photography. This is a newer hobby than writing, but I hope it grows with this blog.
Now I never thought I’d be sharing my writing for anyone to see, but I guess something just sparked and the inspiration flowed from there. See, I didn’t have a big WABAM moment of realising that blogging was my passion. It’s actually pretty boring. So to put it quickly, I was watching one of my favourite youtubers one morning; a video of her holiday to Iceland. The beauty of the land, the joy on her face, the kindness of the people she met along the way, everything in the video just made something in me yearn to experience what she was experiencing. And I want to do the same for you.
My Story
Now something I don’t usually share with people I’ve just met, are my experiences with disabilities and illness. A few years ago I was diagnosed with temporal lobe epilepsy. It has limited quite a few of the usual life experiences, like driving and seeing my favourite metal bands live (apparently the flashy flashy won’t be the best idea for me). I’ve also struggled with mental illness for quite a while now. I can’t even remember how many therapists and psychologists I’ve seen, but I’m finally seeing a psychiatrist to help with diagnosis and treatment for what I’m going through.
Now, because of the frequent seizures and poor mental health, it’s not a surprise that my memory isn’t the best. I’ve had appointments with neuropsychologists (don’t worry I can’t say that word without stumbling on it either) and they basically said that at the moment all I can do to help with my memory at the moment were things like scrapbooking, taking photos and journaling. You see where I’m going with this? So yes I’ve always had a love for writing, but I wanted a way to remember places I’ve seen and the adventures I’ve had before I forget them. That’s how this whole thing started. Like a virtual diary where I’d write about my day, include a few photos and boom! journal. But as I was writing them, I wanted other people to enjoy my experiences as well. I wanted other people to experience my experiences (sorry, that was a lot of experiences). I wanted to inspire others to try and travel, to view the world around them like I am. And for those who can’t because of disability, illness, or whatever reason, I want to help them experience it through my writing.
I’m Just a Person Like You
I know that different people have different struggles like me, whether that’s disability, mental illness, or something completely different. That’s why I started the Travel Journal Blog. I wanted to prove that you can get out there no matter your circumstances. Another reason I’m writing this is to prove that I’m just a person like you, the reader. I have my own battles just like everyone else, but that won’t stop me from doing what I love. Everyone has battles. But everyone has the strength to push through.
The Travel Journal 