The Day it all Began

The date was July 25th, 2013 and it marked the beginning of my journey. I arrived at Wilmington International airport (ILM) around 10am and my flight was due to leave at 11:10am. ILM is a very small airport with a whopping 6 gates. So I had plenty of time to get situated. I went to print my ticket to find my flight had been cancelled. This was not a big deal since my flight to Costa Rica was not until 2:10pm the NEXT day. So I had all day to get into Miami. So I hopped on a later flight with Delta airlines where I transferred at Atlanta airport instead of Charlotte.

While I waited for my flight I took the time to write in my journal. I do not remember feeling nervous for the trip. I really enjoy flying alone. Actually, I prefer it that way. It is just time to reflect and charge up with the booming airport energy. I just like the feeling of leaving for somewhere new, and knowing that everyone else is going somewhere as well. Its almost like every time I take off in a plane its a fresh start and I leave "baggage" behind. Its the start to an unknown adventure mixed with a little bit of nerves.

I started noticing little hints that this trip was meant to be (funny angels.)  I talked to an older couple who were on the same flight that got cancelled and BOOM they had just recently taken a trip to Costa Rica. Coincidence? I think not.

Soon enough it was time to board and the adventure became more of an adventure. I had my ticket scanned and I guess my seat was never assigned in the system. So I had to wait for them to sort that out. I was sort of chuckling on the inside thinking that something did not want me to leave. But there was no stopping me. After a few minutes I was on the plane. I looked to the left and there was a girl with a stuffed sea turtle sitting in her lap. I giggled to myself because when I arrived in Costa Rica I would be doing sea turtle conservation work. Funny angels.

I landed in Atlanta and barley had time to catch my connecting flight. I ran to the gate and made it just in time. I arrived in MIA around 5:00pm. I had a room booked at the airport for the night so I had time to chill and relax before it was time to leave for Costa Rica the next day. I could feel the onset of something momentous happening. I knew that the next day it would all really begin. The best feeling was not quite knowing what would happen, but knowing that it was going to be remarkable.

-Kelly

"A dusty door that had been closed for years had been opened, and behind it was the world..."

Photo credit: Erica Ward

So I know many people think without an open mind. For example, I never thought about traveling or seeing the world. No one thinks about these things until your exposed to it, and man was I exposed to it! I embarked on the journey of my heart, I'd like to call it. I left for Costa Rica on July 25, 2013.

Before this adventure could begin, I needed the approval of my parents and of course their help financially. The seed sprang when a friend of mine told me about her trip with a group called International Student Volunteers (ISV). At first I thought it was too much of a long shot, but then I researched and found a trip to Thailand. Then I erased those thoughts and began thinking, WHY NOT! Why can't I go to Thailand? Why can't I ask my parents to help me out? It actually was about the balance of giving and receiving. I like to think that I have helped my parents to open their minds and helped them to see the light as well (and I worded that simply, but come on we know how stubborn parents can be and man was it a shit load of work! lol.) So that was my justification, and as my friend calls it my "karmic bank."

I pleaded with my parents and tried to show them all the pros of me going on this adventure. I was late in signing up for the trip and I knew time was not of the essence. Finally, I got a call from my dad telling me that both he and my mom would back me up on the trip! I was ecstatic! Right away I called up ISV and to my dismay Thailand was all booked. I could feel my heart drop but the angel of a lady on the phone told me calmly she was going to look for room on the Costa Rica trip.

..And BOOM! There was a spot to Costa Rica, and even better it included conservation work with sea turtles. This was right up my alley, and I began to think this worked out way better than I had ever imagined! I told my dad the good news and we began getting everything ready for the trip!

Each day that passed I thought about Costa Rica. Every chance I got I would tell someone, even people I did not know, that I was going on this trip; I hoped that maybe this would spark something in them as well.

I could see a change within my parents. My mom went from being very set on the trip not happening to sending me packages and packages of supplies to help get me ready to leave. Some sort of hold was broken and I could see the clouds clearing away. Also, I know a pattern was broken for myself; I was following my dreams. A dusty door that had been closed for years had been opened, and behind it was the world...

#1

Well this will be my first ever blog post! Here it goes. I think I will be mostly talking about my journey's, maybe just life in general. Well I am now out of the "spiritual closet". I think people cringe when they hear the word "angels" or "God". I know I used to. But my life has not been the same since I accepted their help into my life. For me the whole thing has just been ending the cycle of feeling sorry for myself, and not believing in my dreams. Mostly I like to view Angels, or God as parts of the bigger ONE or universe. Just by connecting with the universe you connect with all things. All things are vibrating and contain energy. So what we desire, and how we think are little vibrations or self talk we send out to the universe. So what we think we translate and in turn receive. "Change your thoughts, change your life" right? I decided to take the arduous route and CHANGE. It sounds so simple but, for so many people change seems too difficult. It is all about taking that first step.
  I think my first step was changing schools. I chose my path for all the wrong reasons. I was majoring in OT to please my parents, make money, and I did not want to leave my dad behind. I felt like he needed me at home. But I came to realize I could not lie to myself anymore and I started to realize a lot of the things I felt responsible or wasted energy worrying over were not my deal. I moved to UNCW and changed my major to Marine Bio. The hardest part was telling my dad. But I told him the truth and he backed me up. I realized that being true to myself and believing in my path has brought me many blessings. So if you are reading this and know you are on your path for the wrong reason, I hope you take that as a blessing to choose the path of your heart.
   The major thing for me was pulling myself out of the darkness I was swirling in, the darkness I myself built up. I had a hard time transitioning from high school to college. I was just getting out of a relationship and had to deal with all the things I did not want to face within myself. Most of all, I had no one as my crutch; that was the scariest part of all. But the most interesting part is all the obstacles I built were my own doing. I finally decided that I was tired of feeling sorry. I was tired of wasting energy and fueling the shit storm I was swirling in.
   A dear friend of mine showed me that the light was always there, and I know now that it is there shining brighter than ever in dark times. I have learned so much and through picking myself up I opened up the door for my greatest adventure in my life that I will hold within my heart always--my trip to Costa Rica. I will talk about this in the next post!!
-Kelly