Restless Spirit—for me, a divorced fifty-something living in Canada, the lure of adventure unleashed my undying curiosity about the world and about people as I crisscrossed the world for over twenty years and visited 156 countries on all seven continents.

Not just as a tourist but as an ambassador for adventure, working for the World Health Organization, touching (and changing) lives in healthcare settings in the Middle East, Africa, and South America. And the unconventional trips off the beaten path (or any path) to climb Mount Kilimanjaro, or travel overland in a truck on the Silk Road, or scuba dive with sharks, snorkel off remote coral reefs, explore crowded bazaars and museums, live with families and eat at their dinner tables, rejoice in the flavors of unfamiliar foods and a spectacular sunset or sunrise, tumble down sand dunes, pound grain with oppressed women in Africa, and soar in gliders and helicopters over exotic lands and a frozen ice shelf, dance with locals the world over, and savor the universality of the human spirit. That is me.

About those ants in my pants—you'll have to listen to this adventure in Zimbabwe. Touching lives, turning strangers into friends. I, have stowed my travel bag in exchange for the writing life, continue to embrace the inherent positivity in people around the globe.