i go to seek a great perhaps.

“Francois Rabelais. He was a poet. And his last words were "I go to seek a Great Perhaps." That's why I'm going. So I don't have to wait until I die to start seeking a Great Perhaps.” -John Green, Looking for Alaska 

I, like Alaska Young, believe I have a great perhaps to be found. I don't know what it is, or where it will be found, but I think I know how to find it; travel.

I caught the travel bug young, my first flight was when I was six months old. and I've always had this dream to visit every state in the United States before I die. I love to travel because I love the moments that can't be planned. I think that's why photography and travel almost go hand in hand, they're all about capturing and remembering those moments.


Even on the most planned-out trip will there will be something you could never have planned for. Like a proposal at Disney World, the shells at the beach being more abundant than they have been in years, a cousin loses their first tooth, a quick downpour in the middle of a hot July day. Those things can't be put on the agenda for the trip, and that's why travel is so enjoyable; it can never be fully planned for.

Photography can never be fully planned for either, I didn't wake up one day and say, "oh, today there will be a dead fish on the beach and i think i'll take a picture of Peter holding it that i really love even though the fish is dead which is kind of gross." That kind of thing just doesn't happen. I think my great perhaps, whatever it may be, will be found in the unexpected. Because in my opinion, you can't set out looking specifically for a great perhaps, it's just something found along the way.

I guess this is where it all becomes a bit contradictory. I am seeking but not specifically looking for a great perhaps. It's a contradictory sentence, but really no different than this: while I was in Paris, we woke up one morning and decided we were in desperate need of a little French coffee shop and/or bakery. We knew what it was we were looking for, but had no idea where to find it. So we wandered the streets of Les Halles, just taking in the smells, reading the menus, peering inside. Finally we found one. Tucked in between a taxidermy shop and a signless building was this beautiful bakery.

We would have never it if we hadn't been searching for something. So to find my great perhaps, I have to be on the lookout. I don't need to know what I'm looking for exactly, but I'll know when I find it.

so yes, I am seeking my great perhaps. No, I do not know if I'll ever find it. No, I will never stop traveling in search of it.

christina is an aspiring photographer and writer of heartfelt photography. she has a bucket list, loves running, traveling, and love stories. she tweets too much, and her project 365 can be found here.