Finding your way

I learned a long time ago that being an intelligent person does not automatically mean you have common sense. Or that a person with an above-average IQ can’t be directionally challenged.

In other words, even the smartest people you know may find themselves floundering at times, searching for the right path to take. And I mean that literally.

Take one of our daughters.

While still in high school, she and her friend, also a very bright young woman, embarked on a short trip north to Cleveland for a purpose I fail to remember.

Their plan didn’t seem a cause for concern for us or her friend’s parents. We had faith in them. We trusted them. They were considered two of the brightest and the best.

After driving for what seemed an eternity, it dawned on them that by that time, they should have been treading water in Lake Erie rather than seeing signs for Ohio State University in Columbus. It never occurred to us they didn’t know the difference between north and south. I remember that on hearing this story, I questioned my own intelligence for letting her leave the house unchaperoned.

We probably should have given her a compass for Christmas that year, but instead, we gave her a map and a highlighter. We told her we expected her to plot our driving trip from our home to our vacation destination in Myrtle Beach, S.C., that summer.

Not that we doubted her ability, but we also took an AAA TripTik, just as a precaution.

An accomplished and successful adult now, she travels frequently and always manages to find her way home — both literally and figuratively.

The lesson to this story is: Don’t be anxious if you don’t always know what path in life is right for you.

You may veer off course now and then, but with the right planning and vision, you will get where you want to be. Plotting your course, whether it is by means of an education or travel, helps you keep your resolve to realize your dreams.

You can use a case like this one to plan new vacations with your family or to plot your path for the future. Carry memories of great vacations past or your hopes of new travels to come. You might consider it a metaphor for your brain; what you put in it is up to you.

I found directions for a caddy in “501 Fun-to-Make Family Crafts” from Better Homes and Gardens. The idea for a dream travel box comes from “Geography Crafts for Kids” by Joe Rhatigan and Heather Smith from Sterling Publishing.

I combined the directions from both to make this travel case. I found a plain cardboard suitcase with handle in a craft store, but any box, such as a shoe or old lunch box, is suitable for the project.

Paint the box with any color acrylic paint you’d like. I used blue because the map I chose as my destination is for the state of Florida. I especially love the Florida Keys, which are islands surrounded by water.

While the paint is drying, use scissors to cut large sections of places you want to visit from maps or pages of an atlas. Brush the back side with decoupage medium and attach to the box.

Continue with this process until you have the entire case covered. Trim as necessary to fit around the hardware.

Place the straight sides of the maps on the box so the edges are aligned, or fold to the inside of the box and attach. Let the box dry.

When the entire box is covered with maps, cover it with a coat of decoupage medium. When dry, apply a second coat.

Fill the box with things that will help you realize your goals and arrive at your dream location some day.