For many GT readers, travel is a part of everyday life — much like brushing your teeth, eating breakfast or checking email. It is impossible not to become changed by it.

For the fifth consecutive year, Global Traveler, in conjunction with United Airlines and Andaz Hotels, set out to find the United 1K Global Traveler of the Year. Travelers from around the globe were invited to share the ways travel has influenced their lives. We asked: In what ways does being a frequent traveler define you? And thousands of frequent travelers answered.

The contest, open to United 1K members, ran online from May 1 to Oct. 31, 2009. Essays, limited to no more than 200 words, poured in, each providing a unique and compelling take on the role of travel. John Mapes of Cardiff-by-the-Sea, Calif., captured the essence of how travel has permeated the day-to-day.

Mapes, the director of global education development with a multinational medical technology company, travels the world on business. In 2009, he logged more than 200,000 miles with United Airlines. Mapes spent two years as a U.S. Peace Corps volunteer and has lived and worked throughout Asia and Europe. Mapes’ worldwide efforts focus on healthcare, environment, energy and economic development. In his spare time, he enjoys bodysurfing, gardening and spending time with his wife, Sarah, and daughter, Kiran.

For sharing his award-winning insight, Mapes can choose between two bicoastal adventures. United Airlines will provide two round-trip first-class tickets to either Los Angeles or New York, and Hyatt’s newest global brand, Andaz, will provide accommodations, dinner and a city tour at either Andaz West Hollywood or Andaz Wall Street.

The Winning Essay

Touch to my heart and down to my side — passport, wallet, cell phone.

Like religious pilgrims who derive comfort from blessing themselves, I have developed my own traveling rituals. I pack the same clothes in the same way in the same suitcase. Socks rolled into shoes; ties folded into the pocket of a coat. The clothes always reach right to the suitcase rim. With my eyes closed, I feel that everything is where it should be.

Before I leave the house, hotel or airplane, I instinctively touch near my heart and down to my side to feel the familiar — passport, wallet, cell phone. I extend the handle on my suitcase and sense the usual weight as it rolls. All is as it should be.

My rituals have crept into my rules for living. Everything has its place. Leave behind what you can. Navigate quickly. Pay attention.

At the same time, if I’m in one place too long, I’m anxious to move on. The right balance of life, for me, is one-quarter sentimental, three-quarters new and different.

My family has tried to replace my suitcase. My company has tried to change my cell phone. I’ve tried to change airlines, but I always come back. I know my suitcase fits in the overhead bin, my book in the seat pocket in front of me.

Touch to my heart and down by my side — passport, wallet, cell phone. I’m ready.