Our Upcoming (and Hopefully) Life Changing Journey

So I am veering rather far off from the topic of clean eating for just a wee bit to let you all know Andy and I will be going off the grid (literally) for the next eight days.

We will be making a journey to Central America for what I believe will undoubtedly be a life changing experience.

Anytime one makes what may potentially be a life changing journey then an element of fear is almost sure to be involved. And yet, I believe fear holds a lot of people back from pursuing their dreams, their passions and their true life’s calling. Although I have done my research on what we are about to do, I am still venturing into completely unknown territory to partake in something that is simply not part of the American culture. So yes, I am absolutely a little nervous.

But, if you want something you’ve never had, then you have to do something you have never done.

So, what exactly is this life changing journey we are about to embark on?

I do not yet want to give a lot of details just yet for two main reasons. I do however promise I will tell all—whether good OR bad—once we get return.

The first reason I don’t want to spill the beans just yet is because it is not exactly “mainstream”. Most people have never heard of it nor is it something that can easily be explained in a single blog post. Although it is far from mainstream, there is actually a tremendous amount of research on it. I have actually been researching what we are about to do like crazy for months now, but there is no way I can condense all of what I have read into a few blog post paragraphs. And two, I don’t know anyone who has done it and the only thing I have to go on is my own research. Since I have not personally experienced what we are about to do, I wouldn’t want to give anyone any ideas or false hopes if this all turns out to not go so well. But I don’t believe that will be the case.

Once I experience it for myself, I promise to share everything I learn. I will do the trial run 😉

I realize it may be frustrating to some of you who are reading this for me to be so evasive. So for those of you who are incredibly curious about what our upcoming and potentially life changing journey is all about I encourage you to watch the Documentary “The Reality of Truth” made with Deepok Chopra, Ram Das, Sri Sri Ravi Shankar, Shiva Rea and an incredibly long list of other well-known influencers.

What we are going to do is absolutely not going to be for everyone. But it has changed the lives of a number of people who have been open to it.  And one thing is for certain, Andy and I are both going on this journey with incredibly open minds, positive energy and a willingness to learn. It is my belief we will come back with a completely new perspective on life.

Why Would I Even Want a Life Changing Experience?

I have not discussed our upcoming Central America trip with a lot of people, but the few people I have talked about it with have all asked the same initial question, “Why on earth would you want a life changing experience? What do you want to change about your life?”

First of all, it is me more than Andy who is seeking this experience, but I am ever grateful to my husband for being 100% on board and for supporting me fully (as he always does.) I can’t completely put into words why I feel the need for a radical change, but at 40 years old I am just feeling like I need to know there is more out there.

I have been married almost my entire adult life and was pregnant with our son, Blake, 3 months after our wedding. I then started my first book when Blake was 6 months old and since then I have spent years crossing off things from my big “to do” list. All of the things I have crossed off were supposed to leave me feeling happy and fulfilled. Although there is still far, far more I could do and considerably more I could achieve in life, at this particular stage I have crossed off everything I initially thought I ever wanted out of life. Now what?

The thing is, there is nothing at all specific I can put my finger on right now that I want to change about our life or that I want to achieve. My “want list” has actually diminished substantially the older I have gotten. I certainly do not want a bigger house, fancier clothes, a better car, or anything at all materialistic. I don’t even want more friends as the friends I have are real and true and most of them I have been friends with for almost my whole life.  I have an amazing husband, a wonderful son that I am incredibly proud of, loving parents, great friends and even a great relationship with my in-laws! I honestly can’t think of a single thing I would want to change about my lifestyle or the relationships I have. After battling with health issues for so long, I no longer even have a medical problem to overcome. In so many ways I am blessed beyond belief.

Anyway, clearly my life is not bad. But what then is missing?

I have not yet read her book, but I am wondering if maybe this is how Elizabeth Gilbert felt when she wrote Eat, Love, Pray? Apparently Gilbert had everything a modern American woman was supposed to want—husband, beautiful home, successful career—but was still not feeling fulfilled. Gilbert wanted a radical change and she went about doing something radical to make it happen. I really admire her for that because I know so many people who are unhappy with various aspects of their life but they let fear (or something?!) hold them back from making a change of any meaningful significance.

Gilbert’s book is the story of how she left behind the outward marks of success and set out to explore three different aspects of her nature, against the backdrop of three very different cultures: pleasure in Italy, devotion in India, and on the Indonesian island of Bali, a balance between worldly enjoyment and divine transcendence.

I have absolutely no desire to leave my family to venture off on my own for over a year as Gilbert did though. I am not judging her in anyway for doing what she did, because it worked for her. It’s just that in my heart I do not believe that is the answer for me. I know it probably would not be the answer for a lot of other women I know either. Eight days away is about all I can commit to doing at this stage in my life (and I am bringing along my husband!) So clearly, I am either not as brave as Gilbert OR I am not feeling as desperate as she felt. But, maybe, just maybe I might have stumbled on a eight-day short cut that may actually be doable for other women feeling the way I am feeling. And yet, what we are about to do is far from anything new—it has been done for thousands of years in other cultures. It is just very much not a part of the American culture. Having said that, I have a feeling after reading this interview with Gilbert that somewhere along her journey she too has done what we are about to do.

One thing is for sure, Gilbert absolutely had a life changing journey. But she did not get it from doing the same thing she had always done. She stepped way out of her comfort zone.

I promise to fill you all in when I return. I will however not be doing any blogging, Tweeting, Facebook posting, Pinning, Instagram, email or texting while we are away. I plan to totally unplug and figure this all out. I am hoping to report back shortly after Thanksgiving. However, since this is all happening so close to Thanksgiving I did want to make sure and leave you all with the following Thanksgiving recipes just in case you still need some ideas 😉 Here are a few of the things I will be making for Thanksgiving when we return:

• Clean Thanksgiving Side Dishes
• How to Buy the Healthiest Thanksgiving Turkey
• Apple and Sweet Potato Casserole
• Superfood Cranberry Smoothie (this is my favorite thing to make on Thanksgiving morning–it keeps me going strong all morning)
• Homemade Cranberry Sauce
• Turkey Casserole (this is my favorite way to use leftover turkey!)
• Green Bean Casserole
• Pumpkin Spice Latte (another easy and delicious Thanksgiving morning recipe)

Wish me well!

Stay tuned…

XOXO

 

 

 

 

 

11/21/2016 UPDATE!!!

We are back! It was more than life-changing. I wrote two blogs describing in detail everything:

• Can an Ayahuasca Experience Make Your Brain Younger?
• Our Ayahuasca Ceremony Experiences at Rythmia in Costa Rica