A few months ago, I bought tickets to Guatemala.
For a variety of reasons, Brent and I decided not to go. I was sad, but I put it out of my mind because thinking less or not at all about it was the only way I could cope with the idea of having purchased a plane ticket that would go unused. The thought of calling the airline to try to get a partial refund or to change the tickets felt heavy to me, so I never did it.
But I was definitely not going. I agreed to the yoga schedule that had me teaching twice that week. I made some other plans with friends. I had some work to do. It was shaping up to be a week like all the rest. Beautiful, but typical.
I woke up that Friday morning, the day of the would-not-be trip, and took Máximo for a walk. I made coffee. I ate breakfast. I got dressed for the gym. Then I thought, “I still have 20 minutes before I would have to go to the airport.”
I consulted my sister via Facebook. “Is this silly?”
I wrote to my friend/owner of the yoga studio. “How much trouble would it be for you to cover the classes I was going to teach?”
And I packed a bag.
My sister said, “I figured that’s what you’d decide.”
The yoga studio owner said, “Go with your gut. I love spontaneity. I’ll figure it out.”
I didn’t have a hotel booked. I didn’t know the exchange rate from pesos or dollars to quetzales. I wasn’t sure about the best way to get from the airport to Antigua, where I had heard in passing was a good place to be, nor did I know what to do when I got there.
And even though it took me 40 minutes to get out the door, I caught a cab and arrived at the airport with time to spare.
I had the best time. Yes, I wish Brent could have come, too, but traveling alone is how I learned to travel, and there’s so much richness in it.
I met up with fellow yoga teachers whom I had met in Medellín.
I climbed an active volcano.
I ate really good food.
I visited Lake Atitlan, one of the most beautiful in the world.
I had time to myself, and it was wonderful.
The key to all of this? I didn’t overthink it.
It’s okay not to analyze. In fact, in a lot of cases, like this one, maybe it’s better not to. If I had wasted too much time thinking, I would have missed the plane only to come up with a thousand reasons about why staying home was the right thing to do. I would have missed all this and never been the wiser.
This trip was yoga in action.
I left for the airport that morning because I was living in the present moment. I lived moment to moment while finding my way to Antigua, finding a hotel, finding out what to see and do in that part of the world. It led to a million moment-by-moment discoveries and absolutely zero concern. Because when you’re right here, right now, everything’s good.
The change of scenery recharged my creativity and helped me clarify some of my goals and ideas. It reminded me of how much I’m capable of, how smart and resourceful I am, how kind and amazing people are no matter where you go in the world.
While I am, yes, totally saying you should travel alone to another country at the last minute, I’ll also say it doesn’t have to be that extreme. Just remove the numbing analyzing process we put ourselves through over so many of the opportunities in our lives. I’m constantly working on thinking less because weighing pros and cons, believe it or not, comes more naturally to me. This trip was a good reminder to me that when we say yes, good things happen.