Mindful Moment #51 - Audacious Adventuring

Audacious Adventuring

A long time ago, when I was about a year away from turning 30, I planned a great adventure for myself. I felt like it was some declaration of independence I needed to make by striking out into the world on my own. It couldn’t be some quick, short, easy trip. I needed to challenge myself and go the distance. It needed to be a challenge.

I was still in grad school at the time and quite literally in need of finding myself. In my twenties, there had been big breakups, big moves, family trauma, failed plans, and half of a master’s degree I didn’t know what I would do with when it was completed. I had dreamed all of these big dreams that just didn’t happen. I had no real plans for post-graduation life. But I did have a plan for an escape. At least temporarily.

So, around this time I happened to be reading a Smithsonian magazine and found an ad in the back that captured my imagination. “Travel by cargo ship!” it said, with a little picture of such a ship. Huh. Could I go somewhere by cargo ship? Could I go to my dream destination, Australia? I popped on over to the webpage and began to plan, in earnest. Yes, I could take a freighter to Australia before I turned 30. If I left on the January 8th ship, I would get there in 24 days. Then, I could backpack and stay in hostels and ride the trains. I could find my way to Kangaroo Island. Maybe I could find a black opal. I could swim in three different oceans in the same trip. I could get a two day layover in Fiji on the flight home. Huh, again. I might see a crocodile, or a koala, or a bunyip. The plan was laid. I just needed to sit on it, waiting for it to hatch.

Long story short, the stars aligned and I somehow scraped up the funds and the gumption to follow the dream. I honestly had the best time. Even those long, dull days on the ship where nothing much happened were enjoyable in their own way—sunsets were always glorious. Those hard days where my pack was too heavy, the hostel was three hours away, and the food was sparse, were worth learning from. One of those hostel stays featured an Australian naval cadet in a hot pink speedo. No funny business—just a drunk kid passed out on the floor. I went to so many museums, hung out in libraries and book shops, tried all the best local food, and tried to figure out the rules to rugby.

My next big “round” birthday is happening next year, and I want to let myself dream toward a destination. Remembering how much fun the process of planning was, especially when it was paired with the actual trip, inspired me to start planning my next great adventure. Maybe it will be a second “declaration of independence” for me. Lord knows I need to get away.
If you are open to an adventure, let’s consider some manifestation techniques to make it come to fruition.

Maybe you’ll just mark this up to distraction, and I wouldn’t really argue with you, but daydreaming is one way to manifest something like an adventure. Instead of passively imagining *something* and letting your mind wander, focus your daydream on a specific thing you want to do or someplace you want to go. Envision yourself in first person—put yourself into whatever scenes you are imagining as if seeing through yourown eyes. Let your imagination ponder over questions like, “How will I get there? What will I need to take? Where am I going to stay? What will I do when I am there?” Play in the ideas that arise as you daydream. Write down anything you want to remember.

Also, watch for signs—literal and figurative—in the here and now. I like to believe that the Universe wants to be a co-conspirator with us and tries to help us by sending signs. If you have decided you want to go to Santiago, Chile, and suddenly all things Chile start showing up in your life, pay attention!

Do some “scripting” of your plans. You need to identify exactly what you want to do, and start journaling about it. This alsoinvolves digging into the nitty gritty of a place to be prepared for when you get there. You want to build an idea into reality by clarifying all aspects of your plan. It might start feeling like a script, but writing out the vision allows you to conjure how it will feel when the plans happen. You need to feel what that place feels like—which may be hard if you’ve never been there. So…

Create a vision board. I know we did these when The Secret came out, but it doesn’t hurt to have a board where you collect pictures of the places you want to see, or restaurants you want to try, or anything having to do with your grand adventure. What about your trip feels the most exciting to you? How can you represent that on a vision board? Get creative with it. Add or take away as much as you want. Create lists, sketch out potential scenes you hope to see, and keep any significant notes in one place.

Immersion into the culture of the destination might be harder to do, depending on what the plan is, but you can look up musicians from there, as well as artists, poets, and novelists. Listen to the music, read the poetry. If there is another language spoken there, start learning key phrases. Start listening to any podcasts from/about your destination. Your goal is to soak up as much of the experience as possible in advance. You’re manifesting “being there” into reality by consuming these aspects of the culture.

And when you need to take a break from manifesting, be sure to express gratitude to the Universe for allowing you the joy and fun of this experience.

I hope the mental escape creates a place of peace in your hearts this week, friends.

Namaste,
Amy Barth-Morales

***THANK YOU for all of your responses to last week’s newsletter. I really appreciate the feedback. And if any of you would like to give me an official credit for the creed or any of my other writing, I am so appreciative. My full name is signed above.***

INSPIRATIONS THIS WEEK

We’re feeling inspired by these incredible and thought provoking pieces:

James Webb Space Telescope images challenge theories of how universe evolved
The James Webb Space Telescope appears to be finding multiple galaxies that grew too massive too soon after the Big Bang, if the standard model of cosmology is
to be believed.
Archeologists find ancient tomb of temple guard near Giza Pyramids
A 3,200-year-old tomb belonging to Panehsy, the guard of the temple of the Egyptian
deity Amun, has been uncovered in Saggara necropolis.
Kombucha to Kimchi: Which Fermented Foods Are Best for Your Brain?
Fermented foods such as kimchi and kombucha contain amino acids which are key to
the production of serotonin and consuming these foods can have a positive impact on
mood and stress reduction. Researchers say fermented sugar-based and vegetable-
based products are best for both gut and brain health.

That’s all for today, y’all – remember, taking time to focus on you is an act of love.

We hope you found this helpful – don’t hesitate to reply with any feedback on how we can improve future Mindful Moments! We can’t wait to hear from you.