This Life

This Life….

Is about celebrating the moment

And understanding that we’re not guaranteed

Or owed another day

And how cool it is that what we hide

can actually be the fuel towards our glory

and that it’s not so bad being proven wrong

This life…

Is about welcoming the next blind turn

And the possibility that

There’s no such thing as coincidence

And that empathy is incredibly sexy

And that it’s never too late to

pick up a guitar or a paintbrush

or to make an amend

or to make a new friend

This life…

Could be about rekindling a past flame

Or igniting a new one

Or becoming a doer instead of just a dreamer

Or savoring the caress of a love long gone

Love this life…

Means whatever it is you want it to mean because

It is a celebration of you and your path

Cherish it...

Because it could go at any second…

As I fly over the crystal waters of the Pacific along the coast of Central America today I ponder the pure truth of this poetry. It is amazing when we come to valid realizations in this life...one which is so profound is that we are not guaranteed nor owed anything. I have come to experience a very interesting phenomenon among the couch surfing community and I wonder about the future of this international project. Apparently ungrateful couch surfers have left a bad reputation for the rest of us. Hosts are now coming from a place of defensiveness instead of love. Something I have learned is that to give is to receive. I know that I will receive what I am giving now, in this moment, in this time, in this place. So, ultimately it seems that defensiveness comes from a place of judgment. Here is a lesson from Jampolsky that I would like to share with you:

Judging others and yourself increases fear and guilt, shutting the door on love. Begin today by asking yourself the following questions:

If we stopped judging for one day, what would that day be like? If we chose to concentrate on extending compassion instead of judgment, how would my experience change? If we devoted a day to love rather than judgment, how would I feel around other people? I leave you with this to ponder as well as Mother Nature at work. The storms in Central America are truly spectacular! Thunder and lightening storms almost every night during this season.

Opening the Heart Chakra

 (Sunrise on Beach in Manuel Antonio, Costa Rica)

"We are all joined and are ultimately more "a part of" than we are "a part from" each other in this world." - Jampolsky

The past few days have been quite an adventure....my friend, Luna from Guatemala and I, traveled from Costa Rica to Panama over two days via hitch hiking. We slumbered on the beach at Manuel Antonio....was lullabied to sleep by the rolling waves...awoke refreshed...was greeted by a beautiful sunrise and embraced by the gentle warm sea at dawn....
Then we hitched to Panama...walked across the border on foot and caught another ride on the Panamanian side....stayed with Some of Luna's friends in David, Panama and then I hitched to Panama City....Today I am headed to Colon/Portobello and eventually in the next days to San Blas....

In my readings I am learning about judgment. "Judgment always sets conditions on love. It says, I will love you if I find you fit my expectations and if you pass my evaluations. A judgmental mind makes lists, often unconsciously, of passing criteria for love. In contrast, forgiveness sets no conditions. Forgiveness simply allows love to be itself." Jampolsky

I feel that I had my first true glimpse of this during a medicine journey last week with Peyote medicine. This medicine completely opens the heart chakra. I felt that Love was pouring out of me, into me and through me. We danced for 14 hours from night until afternoon the following day under a blanket of accepting sky....bathed in the river next to the main event....it is such a gift to be so connected to nature in its most pure form. I feel so grateful to have shared this moment in my life with such amazing people. It is so interesting how like-minded people always seem to magnetize to each other no matter where they are from in the world.

I am learning to embrace uncertainty in the most real way. Without resistance I have found that what flows into my life is absolutely fruitful. The rigidity of a plan only leads to frustration due to the attachment to the outcome. This is human condition. Without attachment to the outcome there is no disappointment. There is no rush to the destination...the journey awaits me...why should I skip all the beautiful things in the middle....it would be like eating a cream cheese danish without eating the cream cheese filling....Meeting such amazing people along the way....my story is unfolding everyday in the most spontaneous way....

O seeker, know that the path to Truth is within you.

You are the traveler. Going happens by itself.

Coming happens to you, without you.

There is no arriving or leaving; nor is there any place;

nor is there a contained within a container.

-Sheik Badruddin-

Oh how beautiful the last few days have been....left Pacha Mama with a wonderful group of new friends....we journeyed to Playa Guiones for a couple of days where we stayed in Solo Bueno Hostel....spent some time on the beach and made some amazing music....then my friend Malaika and I hired a car and traveled East toward Arenal, Costa Rica. On our way we picked up a hitch hiker....a gorgeous girl named Moon standing barefoot on the side of the road with her guitar....I said, "we MUST pick this girl up"... she invited us to stay in Arenal at The German Bakery owned by Tom a good friend of her. We spent the whole day Saturday riding around Lake Arenal on Tom's boat. After two days in Arenal we ventured toward La Fortuna stopping for beautiful views, natural hot springs and a hike to a breath taking waterfall. Along the way I have been blessed to meet such talented musicians. The video attached is Malaika from Australia and Moon from Guatemala playing Didjeridoo and djembe drums. We have been traveling together for the past few days and are now staying at Pura Vida Guest House in La Fortuna. Earlier today we met some musicians during our hike to the waterfall. They invited us to join in on some live music at a local bar & grill in town. The connections one can make while traveling are so mind blowing! Tomorrow we are traveling East toward the Caribbean coast of Costa Rica and South toward Panama. I am so excited for the next steps in this adventure. It's so interesting how life truly does happen while you're busy making other plans. I'm done making plans....things are so much smoother when all goes with the flow. I am learning to flow, as water does, without resistance.