Traveling far from family and friends can be difficult (adventurous and exciting, yes). But there are days where you just want to tackle-hug your brother or cuddle up on the couch with your sister for a cute movie.

On those days, you need a way to connect with your loved ones, even when you’re far away.

I don’t know what that will mean for you, but I can share what I did.

It all started with a photo that my mom snapped of my sister and me posing with a stone lion in front of the Biltmore Estate in North Carolina. We claimed to be teaching the severe lion how to roar.

Searching for Lions

And then, a few months later, when I was in Europe, I began to notice a lot of stone lions. This began my quest to find a lion in every new place I visited to send to my sister.

For my part, it made me feel closer to my sister despite being separated by an ocean and 6 time zones.