Hi there! Hope you’ve had a great week. We returned last night from Tulum and what a time we had. I can’t wait to share our trip in next week’s Tuesday Travel post.

I seem to have developed an airport ritual as of late. I print out my boarding pass {yes, I still like a paper copy}, get myself through the security line and hit up the closest Hudson News to pick up Conde Nast Traveler. I know, I know. I should get myself a subscription to save some cash. But the truth is, I fear it will get destroyed going through the post, as so many of my magazines do.

Anywho… this month’s Traveler includes an important message. The importance of travel in these uncertain times. Editor and Chief Pilar Guzman, gets personal in her beautiful Editor’s Letter and over twenty global influencers share theirs in a thought provoking piece, featuring an inspiring essay by author Elizabeth Gilbert, who recounts her time in a tiny fishing island in the middle of Indonesia. As she says, “you’ll be amazed by what the world gives back to you.”

After last fall’s Paris attacks, we questioned canceling our upcoming trip in May. And ultimately we decided that the risk is worth the reward. Growing up on a small island thirty miles out to sea, I was anxious early on in my life to travel. But after my divorce, I decided to throw fear to the wind and open up my eyes {and heart} to the world. For me, travel taught me to love again. And that is why I believe it’s so important to continue to travel whether it be across state lines or to the most remote far away island. Each journey will fill you with so much love. You’ll never be the same again.

Here are a few of my favorites reasons cited in the article:

“Traveling enables us to see the world through the eyes of someone else, and to undestand their aspirations and assumptions. It’s about empathy, which is not only important to the work of our diplomats but to all of us as we seek to understand different cultures as well as our own.” Secretary of State John Kerry

“To understand what’s going on in the world, you have to see the world.” Aerin Lauder

“Travel unlocks a world of flavor.” Chef Marcus Samuelson