The Spanish rooftop that changed my life & could change yours.
I believe that everyone person we encounter comes to teach us something & contribute to our evolution. If you are open and paying attention, simple conversations can change your life & the one I had with a stranger on a rooftop in Spain did just that for me.
At 22 I was on a hostel rooftop in Spain, broken hearted, crying over a guy, feeling totally rejected & wondering what the hell I was doing in Spain, by myself, crying over a guy. ha!
The truth is, as much as I was hurt by him, what I found more painful was the hope & courage that seemed to be out of my grasp now that I didn't have him by my side. Let me explain...
For the first time in my life I recognised a kindred spirit - one who saw the world similarly & who made me feel OK to be pursuing my dreams. He made me feel that there wasn't anything wrong with following my passions. He was the first person I'd met who seemed to be living life by his own rules and doing what he loved, and being with him gave me the courage to think it was also possible & acceptable for me.
When things ended, my security blanket was gone and it was as though my self belief & courage to do things on my own terms went with it.
I'd met people who were traveling, but they all seemed on their way back to something - back to university, a career, 'reality'. I started to think that maybe I should just return home & get that job like everyone else was doing. Which made my heart sink even further.
In that moment, a guy from Texas arrived and came to sit with me. Hours and hours passed as we sat under the stars deep in a conversation that would change me forever.
He was in his early 30's and in line to inherit part of his families multi-million dollar oil business. He described his life path as being mapped out and handed to him on a silver platter. However, despite what others expected him to do he had a dream of becoming a doctor, the kind that travels to 3rd world countries to help in impoverished areas & situations. It'd been an internal struggle & external feud with his family, but he finally did what he knew his heart wanted & enrolled in University.
Starting out in something where he was considered ' late' or 'old' and walking away from the security and certainty he had, demonstrated to me how important it was to honour your truth and follow what you feel called to do, no matter what your starting point is.
Learning his story taught me that it doesn't matter what age, stage, or background you have because it comes down to your choice, your determination and self belief to create the life you love & seize the opportunities that come your way.
That it doesn't matter what's expected from you , or 'acceptable' by the standards of others, the most important thing is to trust your instincts, follow your heart & allow your passions to lead the way to your purpose.
Its been 8 years since that conversation & I'm still traveling the world. Working in my own business that I love and helping others to do more of what lights them up.
You can do it Wild One, believe in yourself and follow those feet wherever they want to lead.