I bought a flight ticket to Southeast Asia
It is official, I finally did it!
Leonel RuizLife, Thoughts, Travel3 min read
With all the fear in the world and my nerves completely exposed, I finally bought my flight ticket to Southeast Asia. It still doesn’t feel real.
For a long time, I kept postponing it. I always found a reason to wait, that it wasn’t the right moment, that I could save a bit more, that maybe it was too risky. Deep down, I knew those were just excuses, ways of dressing up fear so it felt more reasonable.
Because yes, I was scared. Really scared. This isn’t a short trip or a weekend escape. It’s a long journey with no return date. It means leaving everything behind, letting go of the stability I know, and stepping straight into the unknown. And even so, I did it. Because if there’s one thing my mother taught me growing up, it was to follow my dreams and never forget them.
People forget their dreams all the time. They convince themselves they were childish, unrealistic, too expensive, or that the timing is no longer right. Fear gets in the way, or comfort becomes easier. I’ve had those thoughts too, but I’ve never been able to let go of the things that make me feel alive, the things I imagined doing as a kid, someday.
I promised myself I would live a life I could feel proud of, and so far, I’ve kept that promise. I’ve crossed a few things off my list, but there’s still so much left to experience. Life is too short to stop doing what you love because of fear, or because of what others might think. I’ve heard that at the end of life, people don’t regret what they did, but what they never dared to do. I don’t want to live with regrets. I’d rather try and fail as many times as it takes than spend my life wondering what would have happened if I had tried.
As I was finalising the purchase, my hands were shaking. My heart was pounding, like it knew I was about to do something that actually mattered. Because I was. Clicking “Confirm purchase” wasn’t just buying a plane ticket, it was the beginning of a new chapter. A point of no return. A decision that would divide my life into before and after.
It’s strange how a single moment can hold so much weight. A dream that took years to form, becoming real with one small movement of a finger on a mouse. Those are the kinds of moments that shape a life. The ones that force you out of what’s familiar and into something completely new and sometimes frightening.
I don’t know what’s waiting for me on this journey. Maybe incredible experiences. Maybe difficult days. Struggling with a language I don’t speak at all, getting lost in unfamiliar cities, facing loneliness or frustration. But I also know I’ll see places I never imagined, taste new food, meet people with stories that stay with you, and learn a lot about myself along the way.
I’ve always believed dreams are meant to be lived, not stored away and forgotten. If something excites you, if it makes you feel alive, you owe it to yourself to go after it. With fear. With doubts. With shaky hands. But you go. Because if you wait for fear to disappear completely, you’ll never take the first step.
So if you’re reading this and there’s a dream you’ve been postponing, don’t forget it. Don’t abandon it. Work towards it. Don’t let fear freeze you in place, because life keeps moving and time never stops. Dare to take that first step. In the end, all we really have are the stories we lived and the dreams we were brave enough to follow.
This trip is a promise I made to myself a long time ago. And today, with a ticket in my hands, I know that promise is finally about to be