I always love it when a friend points someone my way because they make a good interview candidate. My long-time friend and In-between contributor, Madison, told me she’d met someone she knew had some great stories to tell. She then introduced us over email. I’m in awe that technology provides us with ways to meet and talk to people all over the world. I did a phone call with Raychelle to learn a bit more about travel and how she’s embracing her current “in-between” stage in life.
Ray has traveled to Canada, Mexico, Puerto Rico, Cuba, Costa Rica, Panama, Guyana, Colombia, Philippines, Guam, S. Korea, Malaysia, Thailand, Indonesia (Bali), Singapore, Cambodia, Vietnam, Kosrae, Pohnpei, Yap, Marshall Islands, Australia, Spain with upcoming plans to visit Germany, England and Scotland. She’s a certified yoga instructor, ESL (English as a Second Language) teacher, and a freelance writer.
Lindsey: I’m so excited to learn more about you! Tell me a little about yourself.
Ray: Yeah, so, I’m originally from South Carolina. I’m an English teacher by trade. I’ve got a master of fine arts in writing. I’ve basically spent the past seventeen years teaching English as a second language to non-native speakers. Most of that work has been done in Mexico and the Marshall Islands. I’m also a certified yoga teacher and I’ve been doing that for about four years.
Lindsey: That’s so cool. My boyfriend’s sister is about to get her ESL certification so we’re so excited for her. So, this blog kind of came about because when I graduated college I realized I still had no idea what to do with my life; I felt just as lost about what comes next as I did before the four years of higher education. I deal with my uncertainty through travel and adventure. So, tell me a little bit about what attracted you to travel and what you’ve learned from it.
Ray: Sure, so it’s funny that you’re exploring ideas of being in-between because I’m kind of in an in-between place right now as well. I’m transitioning into a new career and traveling a little more full-time. My original studies were in languages so I started traveling as a way to boost my language skills. I traveled to Mexico several times. Then I studied abroad in Puerto Rico and that kind of opened the door for me to feel comfortable traveling more. The big push to make it more permanent was leaving the U.S. to live abroad after finishing my master’s degree. So that was when I ended up in the Marshall Islands. From there the confidence to travel more just kept building.
Lindsey: Why do you think your drawn to these others places and why would you encourage someone else to visit other places?
Ray: I think for me it was a gradual process. Initially, as a language student I was drawn to the places I studied. I studied Spanish and German for my bachelor’s degree and Spanish ended up being the more accessible language. So Mexico, Puerto Rico, Cuba, Costa Rica, Panama, Columbia: I was drawn to those places because of the language. I’m in Spain right now, so there’s a level of comfort there. But once you leave the U.S. and begin living abroad, you meet people and you have access to different perspectives of the world.
For example, living in the Marshall Islands I had co-workers from all over the world and that piqued my interest to visit other places because I knew people from those places. So I would say if you’re someone who’s interested in travel, you’ll probably have a more rich experience if you have an interest in the country for some other reason than just getting a stamp on your passport. There’s been a huge interest in travel lately, but I think a lot of it comes down to ticking off boxes and so people miss out on making the real connections.
Lindsey: I agree. There’s certainly a kind of glamor associated with travel. I mean, I totally support traveling for fun. That’s why we do a lot of things, to have a good time, but I think it’s easy to miss out on those more rich experiences if we’re just trying to create an experience that we think we might have or maybe that we’ve seen someone else have. I’m certainly guilty of that. I’d really like to go live somewhere else for a month in order to get to know it better.
Ray: I would say that once you take that step you’re going to meet people that will lead you to other places.
Lindsey: You also mentioned being drawn to other places because you were learning the language. In my previous interview with a language coach and author, we talked about how being able to communicate with a community in their native tongue is such a beautiful and more in-depth experience.
Ray: Absolutely. I think if you can learn even simple things and basic questions it can change the experience. But also, for me as an example, in Thailand I had no ambition to learn Thai, but I had a friend from there. So I was still able to have that access to the culture through her. Maybe don’t limit yourself to places where you can speak the language, but be intentional about those connections.
Lindsey: What advice do you have for anyone experiencing an “in-between” phase, who maybe feel stuck?
Ray: I would say pay attention to yourself. Usually, when we’re in those places we feel stuck, we have a tendency to focus on outside input. We often listen to what other people are saying about what we should do or where we should go or who we should be. And I think that’s incredibly dangerous as far as actually being able to create a path that’s sustainable for you. I know that whether I’m living in Europe, or living in the States, or I don’t know, living on a boat; there are always going to be certain things about myself that I know to be true. Those are the things that I can fall back on no matter what to take care of myself. I think it’s important to recognize who you are.
Obviously for younger people that’s going to be developing, but there are certain aspects of your character that you are confident in. Those are the things you need to lean into when you’re in places of confusion or transition. Those are the things that will always help you pull yourself up.
So if you’re a person that likes to be around other people, parlay that into your next career move. If you know you want travel, look at ways you can do that and make it lucrative. If you know you’re an inherent educator, there’s so many opportunities to teach in so many different ways. But if you get bogged down by what other people are telling you you should do, you’re going to lose a lot of time and energy that you can put towards something that you really want.
A HUGE thank you to Ray for sharing her story with us! Drop us your thoughts and questions below.