Strong Roots Move Mountains |
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Canada. Bohemia. Root chakra (& surroundings). Family & history. Mother Earth.
I was asked a lot of questions about this trip once I decided to leave, one of the most common being, "What made you decide to do this?" What, indeed?
I've been meaning to travel long-term since I was 14 years old - which means this trip has been 10+ years in the making.
The next couple of inspirations came two-fold:
1. In 2006 I developed substance abuse problems that culminated in a trip to my Vancouver clinic where I reached out for help. The Head Nurse Practitioner did the math and added up how much money I'd spent on just some of my habits and it worked out to something ridiculous like $8K. "You could have traveled the world by now," she said. She hit home: I kicked my habits, picked up a new lifestyle and decided that I would do just that - travel the world!!!
2. Also in 2006, I was participating in an online forum where racism was a hot topic of discussion. In being faced with my own prejudices and preconceptions I read (somewhere, at some point...) that one of the reasons why children of immigrants have a tendency towards appropriating other cultures is that these children feel like they have no culture of their own. A little self-exploration found that I did feel this way - what the heck did "being Czech" even mean? What are Czech people like? What does the culture really look like? What does the history mean? What do Czech people do, live like, feel like, experience? Best way to find out: go back to my roots and educate myself. And en route to explore my Canadian heritage to back it all up.
This trip has a very simple-but-complex theme to it: Roots. My roots.
My personal history, my family history, my cultural history.
My ability to "root down" internally, the strength of my root chakra, my yogic journey.
The Earth as a whole, the earth underfoot, the earth inside each of us.
This journey is not just a journey of the external; this is a journey for me through the internal. It's a celebration, a promise kept to myself, and an expression of sheer joy. Maybe it can be an inspiration for those who could use one... :)
Today is a blessing.
Namaste.
I was asked a lot of questions about this trip once I decided to leave, one of the most common being, "What made you decide to do this?" What, indeed?
I've been meaning to travel long-term since I was 14 years old - which means this trip has been 10+ years in the making.
The next couple of inspirations came two-fold:
1. In 2006 I developed substance abuse problems that culminated in a trip to my Vancouver clinic where I reached out for help. The Head Nurse Practitioner did the math and added up how much money I'd spent on just some of my habits and it worked out to something ridiculous like $8K. "You could have traveled the world by now," she said. She hit home: I kicked my habits, picked up a new lifestyle and decided that I would do just that - travel the world!!!
2. Also in 2006, I was participating in an online forum where racism was a hot topic of discussion. In being faced with my own prejudices and preconceptions I read (somewhere, at some point...) that one of the reasons why children of immigrants have a tendency towards appropriating other cultures is that these children feel like they have no culture of their own. A little self-exploration found that I did feel this way - what the heck did "being Czech" even mean? What are Czech people like? What does the culture really look like? What does the history mean? What do Czech people do, live like, feel like, experience? Best way to find out: go back to my roots and educate myself. And en route to explore my Canadian heritage to back it all up.
This trip has a very simple-but-complex theme to it: Roots. My roots.
My personal history, my family history, my cultural history.
My ability to "root down" internally, the strength of my root chakra, my yogic journey.
The Earth as a whole, the earth underfoot, the earth inside each of us.
This journey is not just a journey of the external; this is a journey for me through the internal. It's a celebration, a promise kept to myself, and an expression of sheer joy. Maybe it can be an inspiration for those who could use one... :)
Today is a blessing.
Namaste.
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