Initiation

Saturday, January 25, 2003……. 10AM

The sun shone through the windows of Almost Paradise. I got up out of bed and found that everyone else was already gone. I went and ate some fruit and the manager of the hotel drew me a map. I had no idea where I was, or where the beach was. Honestly, I was questioning why I came to this place. I could have been up North with my Tico Family, laughing and hanging out, sitting on the beautiful beach there. I took a deep breath, put my bathing suit on and found the road that was supposed to lead me to the beach. I quickly decided to change my mind- and instead of be annoyed and irritated by the dusty road; be in gratitude that I wasn’t in some office building in the middle of America. I had no idea what the day was about to hold and that was a gift. My walk became my meditation and my change of attitude initiated me into a true traveler. I was walking in the jungle of Costa Rica, trying to find my way to a new beach I had never seen before. It’s about the journey not the destination. I now had a slight smile on my face. I could hear the waves and birds. I could hear me. And it led me to Playa Guiones, the 3 mile crescent shaped beach, lined by jungle and a few thatched roofs. It took my breath away. I was walking south on the beach now, in awe of the hundreds of perfect shells that surrounded my feet. Nosara. I immediately understood why the name had intrigued me. I kept walking and found a thatched roof with a few of my friends sheltering themselves from the heat. I laid my towel down in the sun and got my journal out and wrote about another evolution in my journey.

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