Thursday, January 6, 2011

Im back to Colorado

Wat up peoples, I am back to western civilazationa after a lot of last minute decision making and a whole lot of action...no, not that type of action...i mean taking action in my life to make changes swift and smmoth for my coming home, or should I just say, returning to the west.
I was about a week into this month long buddhist philosophy course in Nepal when I immediatley and rather clearly decided that it was time for miss sonia to come home.  Why?  well to be honest about every reason in the book came up but the emphasis was actually on taking a break on so much travelling and having some stable environment to regenerate.  Travelling is exhausting people, especially if you a re a sensitive one like me!  And I just came to a very lucid point where, with tact, I swiftly decided and recognized that this trip is over...at least for now.  And the truth is I learned an enormous amount of things and also at the same time feel as though I closed my eyes for a second, had a fantasy, and then opened them again to find myself back in good old boulder.  I dont know how to explain what has happened over my trip abroad or even how to explain what I'm feeling now because I am still adjusting to the fact that I actually went out there and did and I did it on my own.  I guess thats one of the hardest things to recognize in one sel with out turning it into a big ego escapade, to simply acknowledge that I did something that I could only imagine myself doing last year, and that travelling alone isnt at all what you think, but more of what you make it.

-Things i'm adjusting to now are basically building some sort of regular schedule for myself...thats the biggie because I literally had no plan what so ever when I arrived in Thailand, went to India and ended in Nepal, I had no clue when my trip was going to end until the thought arose in my mind and felt right...
-The other thing I'm adjusting right now is my over all health because to tell you the truth people, I gained some travel weight and now have a pleasantly plump appearance, which is not so bad and has been slowly built over time through self gorging of foreign and delicious delicasies, but lets be honest here people, I dont plan on staying like this forever.  Diet and exercise are slowly getting in check and over time body will find homeostasis.
-So these are the things Im adjusting to, overall, a light hand of discipline and moderation is being instilled in order to be able to function at a proper level.

Arriving in the US was interesting...NYC blew my mind and immediatley I wasnted to run out the airport, bum a cigarette from some sexy luggage worker and run to visit my friends over wine and beer, go back to acting, seeing shows, so many sexy people, diversity off the chains, style glitz, glammer...and then my fantasy ended as I ran with every ounce of weak muscle I had in my body to be the last person on the plain to go to Maine to visit my lovely mother.

What can I say about Maine?   Boring!  Okay i am totally not kidding, but it is also an incredibly cute east coast state with delicious sea food to give you enough efa's to have your health set straight for a year.  The nature is magnificient and the best thing is that it is...quiet...yes... Wow! what a great place to spend for a week or so when you have been living in the chaotic atmosphere of over population and horn honking every 5-10 seconds,  Another adjustment though, and that is why I say boring.  I was exhausted from my travels and over 23 hours of transit to arrive at my mohers adorable little two bedroom house in the middle of a town that could be the new sitcom on hallmark.  She introduced me to everyone she knew in Boothbay Harbor (aka the smallest town in Maine) which consisted of a total of Four people (hey its a start considering she's single and just moved into this small town).  Everyone was nice and yada yada, and slowly my internal clock began to recognize the sun coming up as morning and the moon coming down as night.  My broseph came in with his girly and it was great to see them too but though my internal clock was at the beginnings of adjustment a slight irritation was still dormant on a counter of an over exposure to....I bet you would never have guessed even though it makes total sense...I was over whelmed by an over exposure to electricity.  The tv was constantly on either for my family or the animals, constant television, media(which is viral for me) and constant edeginess of what to do next for entertainment in this small town...and to be completely honest, if I was ever asked by my family what I would like to do today I would say, lets spend the day in contemplative silence...
Any whoo...that ended rather fast and then BAM! I was shippd back to boulder in a matter of five hours and doing christmas din din at good friend Jenny's house(who by the way's whole family is actually jewish, haha! i know ironic) and I has a deliciously guilt free turkey dinner stuffing my face with all sorts of legit american delicasies such as mashes potates and gravy, string beans with onion rings, gravy by the wine glass and pecan pie for dessert...okay I know I gota little carried away but I have to say, and I never thought I'd say this before but American food is omg delicioso, especially when its coked right.
So yeah, then I arrived in B-town (aka Boulder, CO) and now I am just adjusting to the more subte things like having a stable environment, driving a car, the higher expenses of everything, what homeless means in the US compared to India THailand or Nepal, televeision, media, Gyms, yoga classes, people being able to hold an easy moderate conversation with you in your native language without there being any complicated misunderstandngs ir need to reiterate myself consistentlt to be propoerky understood... the quality of food here is far neyon what I experienced in most places I went too, and of course the simplest two things and best of all that I have experienced(tp reiterate again) are heating indoors and hot water.  Oh also I forgot to mention that the level of privacy we have as just american, as well as the ability to go out into nature and be safe and simply explore with confidence is at a far larger reach compared to my experiences alon as a solo female traveler in the three counrties I explored.
So in a jist, what I am trying to communicate is that as Sonia, a merely labeled person, a femal, who travelled alone in lets just say not the richest of all places, finds the simple but often taken for granted freedoms that all people regardless of age, creed, race etc. we as Americans must take advantage (nad I am now) of these simple things, and truly appresiate what it is we have that for the most part we dont even take into consideration most of the time, the basic comforts of life, and the personal choice and advantage to lead our lives in the way we choose them (regardless of the work entailed to reach our goals), and that with a little bit more of an open mind, life can take us where we want, and it's the little things that we have to be grateful for in order to not get boged down, and of course, remembering that the rest of the world needs us, needs our positive quailities, and that at any time, we should be willing to sacrifice a little bit of personal comfort in order to truly benefit those who are in further need.  Enjoy what it is you have America, but don't forget that at the level of what it is you have, that is at the level of which you can give back, whether it be on a material or purely mental level, give back, and never forget how incredibly well you have, that is either your jewel or bag of coal...it's up to you.  Enjoy!