Red Headed Stranger

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Ever feel like you belong somewhere else? Somewhere you aren't a stranger? My names Lucas and these thoughts inspired me to pack up and hike across the country when I turned 18. Everyone thought it was a pipe dream I wouldn’t finish because I was broke but I didn’t care. I travelled for months meeting a lot of interesting people but nowhere I belonged until a bus I was planning on taking to Tucson was running late so a worker offered to swap my ticket, I said sure, I don’t care where and she handed me a ticket to Durango, Colorado.

Upon arrival I noticed the small town was surrounded by miles of mountains. I explored the town and everybody I met was incredibly friendly. One guy I met asked if I smoked and I said "yeah, medically, but it's hard to come by while traveling". He then said "wait right here" and walked into a dispensary nearby. He came back and handed me a container of herbs with the strain name "Red Headed Stranger" and started laughing because I'm a red head.

I then met other travelers in a homeless shelter overlooking the town. A missionary named Marcus and I spent some time hiking mountain trails near the town and an Australian DJ named Chris and I spent most nights participating in the thrilling live music venues. Durango was great but I still left because I finally realized why I never belonged anywhere. I'm an explorer, I love adventure.

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