There’s a restless feeling that settles in when a young man approaches adulthood, an itch just beneath the skin, a pull toward something bigger, something undefined but calling nonetheless. It’s the call to adventure, an urge that has existed as long as young men have walked the earth. Some ignore it, suppress it, or let it fade under the weight of comfort and routine. Others listen, step forward, and embark on a journey that defines them.

It’s an urge that has sent countless men into the unknown, across oceans, into the wild, onto battlefields, and through the trials that forge character. This pull toward something greater isn’t just a fleeting feeling; it’s an essential part of a man’s development, a test that separates those who step up from those who stand still.

This yearning isn’t exclusive to men, of course. Women have their own call to adventure, their own roads to walk and battles to fight. But I can only speak as a man, from the perspective of having lived this experience firsthand. There is something unique about the way young men feel it, a restlessness, a deep-seated need to break free, to set out alone and forge an identity in the fires of experience.

The idea of a young man’s call to adventure isn’t new, it’s woven into history, mythology, and even the Bible. Figures like David, Joseph, and Moses were pushed out of their comfort zones, forced to face trials that shaped them into leaders. When Joshua stood on the edge of the unknown, he was told: “Be strong and courageous. Do not be afraid… for the Lord your God will be with you wherever you go” (Joshua 1:9). In one instance, a young prophet named Jeremiah hesitated at his calling, only to be told: “Do not say, ‘I am too young.’ You must go to everyone I send you to” (Jeremiah 1:7). Whether in ancient texts or modern life, the pattern remains the same, greatness doesn’t come from standing still. The world may encourage comfort, but the real test is in stepping forward, facing the unknown, and answering the call.

The musician Nick 13 captures this restless energy in his song Nashville Winter, where he sings, “Sometimes something calls a man to run, he’s gotta leave behind all the comforts of home.” That line alone speaks to something primal in young men, that deep-seated need to prove oneself, to strike out on one’s own, and to accomplish something fulfilling. It’s a great song and album, I recommend you give it a listen. That feeling, that urge is a hunger not just for movement but for meaning. It’s what drives some to chase careers, some to travel, and others, like myself, to join the military and throw themselves headlong into a life of challenge and purpose.

At eighteen years old, I felt it hard. The same streets I’d walked my whole life felt too small, the same routines too predictable and that awful feeling of stagnation like my life was heading nowhere in particular. The Army was my answer. It was my Nashville Winter (I actually joined the Army out of Nashville during a cold FEB). It was my road to disappear on, my proving ground. It wasn’t just about seeing new places or testing myself physically, it was about transformation, about walking into the unknown and coming out someone different, someone better.

For some, the adventure comes in the form of college, a business venture, or moving across the country with nothing but a duffel bag and a dream. Others find it in the volunteering, in trade work, or in artistry. Whatever the path, the point is the same: The call is real, and it demands to be answered. Ignoring it leads to stagnation, to regret, to a slow-burning resentment at a life that never took off. Too many men ignore that call, and before they know it, they’re 30 years old, still living in their childhood bedroom at their parents house, playing video games or doing drugs as a distraction to the call they feel deep down and watch the years slip by. They become shadows of the men they could have been, men who never stepped up, never forged their own path, and never answered the call that once burned inside them.

But here’s the thing, adventure isn’t comfortable. It’s hard. It requires sacrifice, pain, dedication and risk. That’s why so many don’t take it. It’s easier to stay put, to make excuses, to convince yourself that you’re not ready. But the truth is, you’ll never be fully ready. That’s the nature of the call. It demands you step forward anyway, unprepared and unsure, and find out what you’re made of along the way.

A young man’s call to adventure is a gift. It’s what separates those who build from those who watch, those who lead from those who follow. It’s what turns boys into men. And when that itch starts, the one that says “there’s more out there”, that whispers “you were meant for something greater”, listen to it. Because that’s where life really begins.