Ulysses goes to London

STORIES

A lakeside scene with people sitting and standing on a deck, a boy eating near the water, a swan in the lake, and birds flying in the sky on a sunny day with scattered clouds.

Travel with your kids. Then travel with your kids. Then travel with them some more.
As exhausting and nerve wracking it often is.

Urban scene showing a multi-story brick building with large windows, a red bus, a street lamp, and greenery in the foreground, with a blurred word on a glass or plastic surface.

My name is Ulysses. I am a kidoid. On my first trip to London I was struck by its enormity. Reliefed in its hundreds of small parks. Blown away by Jason Isbell and the 400 Unit.

A wooden human-shaped figure on a outdoor park bench, with dry leaves scattered around it and fallen in the foreground. Blurred trees and abandoned small brick building are in the background.

And surprised by my fellow traveler Kim’s constant misalignment of his expectations of what traveling to London would be compared to what it was. This created many frustrating moments for him.

White plastic or wooden icon of a person attached to the bark of a tree.
Wooden figure of a person placed on tree bark.
A handmade wooden bench with a cutout of a human figure in the center, surrounded by fallen autumn leaves and moss on the wood, in an outdoor park setting.

I tried to help Kim realize that we couldn’t miss the actual journey just because it didn’t match our imagined one, shaped from not knowing. I had read George Saunders reflecting on this.

Apparently this alignment, this letting go takes a lifetime.

A journey is made of unknowns. Maybe no one can avoid having expectations. They are necessary and useful.

Adventure is welcoming the total demolition of our imagined journey.

A metallic object in the shape of a person, lying among dry autumn leaves on the ground.
A small white metal cutout sculpture of a human figure standing among fallen autumn leaves in various shades of brown, yellow, and green.
Book cover titled 'Ulysses' with a yellow background, featuring a white outline of a person and a large number 1 with a small letter 's' at the bottom right corner. "Shelterhood" is written at the bottom left.

I am Ulysses. I am a kidoid, a gift in some Within family models. I am designed for adventure.