Bucket List

I’m sitting in the dining room of the house I grew up in. My parents and sister are asleep, and I’m bundled in a fuzzy bathrobe, listening to my dog snoring, drinking Trader Joe’s peppermint tea, and rewriting my bucket list.

I’ve been staying up late recently, partly because of the jetlag but mostly because I’m seeking alone time. As it gets later and later, I feel more and more creative. My eyes start to droop, but my fingers move faster and faster across the keyboard. As my body and mind slowly go to sleep, my soul comes to life.

After 28 months of travel, it’s a huge relief to finally be home again. I’ve been dreaming about seeing these people – friends, family, and even the homeless people on State Street. Now that they are here next to me, its a relief – but it’s also not what I expected.

I feel pulled in many directions by many different people. My sister is only in town for 10 days so she is a priority, but there are also lots of friends to see and parties to attend. And when is the quiet time for myself? I have been doing yoga and making a green smoothie every morning, which is grounding, but it is not enough.

Now, in the dark hours of the night, when I am on the brink of sleep, I can tap into a part of my unconscious that is reserved for dreams and soul travel. It is the upper chakras, it is the throat, the third eye, and the crown. Something is speaking and it is not my mind.

Meanwhile, my bucket list is rational and linear. I have a plan, and I’m not afraid to achieve it. At the same time, I know that if I don’t accomplish every single item on the list, I will not be angry or sad. I will accept what is, no matter what. However, I know I have the power to do it.  And I will.

I’m healing myself. By organizing my dreams, I am manifesting my future.

So take a look at my new bucket list, and let me know what you think.

Frinjan: Anarchists in KL

The walls of their apartment are splattered with colorful posters, bookshelves stocked with controversial texts, and a myriad self-published zines for sale. This is the headquarters for Frinjan, a small group of artists and activists living in Kuala Lumpur, the capital of Malaysia.

Frinjan Headquarters

“We don’t believe in monetary exchange,” says Farhan, one of the leaders of the group. “We want to provide a platform for artists and NGO’s in our home, and through our connections with social media.”

Farhan and his friends host couchsurfers in a spare room, which means they have dozens of foreigners coming through every few weeks to learn about their causes.

They also hold events at their home for artists and activists such as poetry slams and art exhibitions. At markets around Kuala Lumpur they sell zines and books that have been banned by the Malaysian government. We bought one called “Homeless by Choice,” an account from a college professor who slept on the streets and beaches for a year to learn about homelessness.

You can check out their facebook page at https://www.facebook.com/Frinjan. Thanks for hosting us, Farhan and friends!

Mangrove Yoga Ashram

For a blissful week of relaxation I volunteered at a yoga ashram outside of Sydney. Our days were planned out for us:

5:30 yoga, 7:00 breakfast, 7:45 chanting, 8:00 karma yoga, 9:30 volunteering, 11:00 morning tea, 12:30 lunch, 1:30 volunteering, 2:30 yoga nidra, 3:00 afternoon tea, 5:15 yoga, 6:00 dinner, 7:15 kirtan, 8:15 mouna

For karma yoga, we would all gather in the morning to chant Om and then clean up or help in the kitchen, selfless tasks that didn’t seem like chores at all in the loving and supportive context of the ashram. Yoga nidra is a guided meditation, where you lie on the floor and are directed to focus on various parts of your body.

Kirtan is a music session where everybody participates in call and response song in Sanskrit. Mouna is a mandatory silence, every evening from 8:15 until 7:30 the next morning, which gives you time to focus on yourself.

The volunteer projects were varied from working in the garden, bush regeneration, kitchen, or housekeeping. The schedule helped alleviate planning, which is easily the most stressful thing about traveling for me. We met some great people, too! I would have loved to stay longer!