How It All Began: Rookie Mistake #1

Travel - for me this was always an experience that was meant for the other half of the population - you know the kind that never worry about money, time off, credit card limits or the hardships of life. I grew up in an upper-middle class family as an only child, I'm quite certain my parents had the money to travel, but it was never a priority either due to work responsibilities or perhaps just lack of desire on their end to deal with the hassle of it all.

After the tumultuous decade that encapsulated my 20s I became a divorced, single parent in my early 30s and worked hard in a fulling, yet servitude career that barley kept the lights on. That was back in the day when my limiting beliefs had me convinced that choosing between a doctor's visit and new pair of shoes was my sentence for having made bad choices in life. That the freedom that comes with financial stability was meant for those who followed society's rules and didn't flounder in self-doubt, mishaps, and wrong turns. It would be years later until I realized that those with plentiful resources are, ironically, particularly vulnerable to such inward turmoil.

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Inward turmoil

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I won't go into detail about how I found my way into yoga and meditation - that's another stream of consciousness for another day. But I will tell you that yoga opened my mind and and my soul to a different way of thinking, a purposeful way of living, an intentional way of behaving, and an expanded belief system. And once I believed, I mean really believed to my core that anything was possible, I began operating on a higher vibrational level. Almost immediately everything in my life changed. Everything! And that's where one chapter ends and our story begins,

It started out as a 7-day, two person yoga retreat and ended up as a 19 day solitary journey through four countries and 11 cities that would turn out to be a tipping point in my life.

"OMG - How was it? Was it amazing? It looked amazing!", her voice shrill and overbearing.

"I can't wait to hear about every detail. Let's do lunch next week." That was three months ago. I'm still waiting on lunch.

"The pictures were gorgeous! You're so lucky! Did you love it? Tell me how much you loved it."

"I- I loved it." I stammered, feeling pressure to concur with their preconceptions of my own experiences. The truth was that I did love it, but then again ....

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She hugged me tight. I didn't let go. Busy travelers bustled by with their overloaded suitcases and crying toddlers. She grabbed my upper arms sensing my reluctance to say goodbye.

"You are an amazing woman and so brave! Now go do what we all wish I we had the courage to do."

There were those two dreaded words again - brave, courage. I had heard them ad nauseum over the past few months whenever I dared to share my plans with others. Nevertheless, I appreciated the warm sentiments from someone I had only known for a total of 168 hours. The truth was in that moment, I would have given anything to feel the safety and security of heading home. And just like that she was gone and I was alone.

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Alone

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The Athens airport is multicultural blur of businessman hurriedly hoping to make it to Munich before their lunch meeting and confused travelers looking for the correct ticket counter. As I stood in a line that rivaled Disney's latest attraction, universal truths began unwind in front of me:

Limited patience and frustration elicit the same facial expressions and body language in any country,
It really doesn't matter how early you arrive, the frenetic pace of an airport makes everyone feel like they may miss their flight,
An argument between two spouses sounds the same in any language,
Strange sleeping patterns and early morning flights are difficult on all human bodies
Taylor Swift transcends all borders and language barriers,
We all feel a sigh of relief when our baggage doesn't cross the weight limit,
51.2 lbs. Damnit!
Security lines make us question why we chose today to wear the tennis shoes with the difficult laces, and
Finding someone else who speaks our language in a foreign country promotes an immediate sense of comradery and goodwill.

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Goodwill

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