This is the Life

 

 

And you're singing the songs thinking this is the life

And you wake up in the morning and your head feels twice the size

Where you gonna go, where you gonna go, where you gonna sleep tonight?

Where you gonna sleep tonight?

Tonight, I'm writing this from a pleasantly lit cafe, in Medellin, Antioquia, Colombia - with soft rain and listening to today's song of the day, "This is the Life" by Micky. That's the vibe. 

Despite 11 months or so of travel living and however many years of pandemic WFH, I think I'm still just barely learning how to do this lifestyle "the best" way. 

Today's highlights, during my lunch hour, I walked over to a nearby mall. First I explored the three floors and scoped out a few of the restaurants, realizing that over Rappi, I should have been making daily trips here. After I did a lap, I stepped into the nearby Exito, starting on the second floor and decided to do a quick pass through the men's clothes section. Continuing my t-shirt, I found a yellow one. This will be my Colombia shirt. 

The past 3 months, I've lived out of the same suitcase, rotating 14 days or so worth of clothes as part of my WFH wardrobe. It's interesting to see how stationary obligations such as buying clothes, or having a wardrobe bigger than 2 weeks, or painting or decorating your own home or apartment, become luxuries when you spend continuous time on the go. 

I feel much more American than I have in my life before. But I'm not sure I miss the American lifestyle. Yes, there are comforts and elements of stability to it, but I don't think my happiness is exclusively dependent on that. In fact, after booking multiple tickets to various South American major cities en route to and from Buenos Aires, it feels like I'm just getting started. 

One thing I've loved about Colombia is the rain. Ironically, living in Seattle taught me to love the rain. I think it's the darkness that I dislike - or maybe its other coldness and darkness. 

I feel like I'm entering a bit a midpoint. I'm not sure what the summer will bring. There will be changes. I'm still holding on to the few things that continue and pull through with me from stage to stage. "Live many different lives" said Tokyo in Casa de Papel. And I guess in total that's the summary of everything I've been able to experience. I think I'm ready to cut off some of the safety supports and go further. Maybe its my turn to take a break from corporate life. Maybe its time to do grad school full-time for a bit. 

This isn't a glorify travel post. This isn't a here's the secret to success. I think its just a self-reminder to do each day differently, to live presently and to find joy in the simple things. I loved Elder Uchtdorf's thoughts in a recent talk that when we have 100000 things to do - life can feel complicated. But when we remember that our main goal is to love God and serve our fellow man - to follow the Savior, and that everything ladders up to that and that the strength we receive comes from that, then life becomes simpler. 

I've seen amazing things. Spent time with wonderful friends. My 20's have been a decade of both holy solitude and deep isolation; its interesting the relationship between the two of those. The capacity to be alone is the capacity to love. The discipline we exercise over ourselves helps to create love and purpose to our lives and positively influence those around us. 

Where you gonna go, where you gonna go, where you gonna sleep tonight?

Where you gonna sleep tonight?