The great affair is to move.

These pics are from last week's trip to Cusco, Peru. 

Jordan and I went on a short trek that was mind-blowingly beautiful. We were completely isolated, traveling along dirt paths worn smooth by horses and donkeys, often littered with sheep and llama droppings. Sometimes there was no path. We  traversed up mountains, traipsed down gorges, and even stayed the night in a tent on top a mountain, home to a 700year old Incan temple. At one point, the path clung to the side of a 13,000foot cliff. Looking down, I was terrified - even immobilized by fear and vertigo. To overcome, I shielded my peripheral version and looked across at the majestic vista, clinging to the beauty that I could almost touch. 

I have never been one to let fear hold me back, but then again, I have rarely felt fear as tangibly as I did on that cliffside. I began to wonder, am I more fearful the older I become? I know I am....

Is it because I now intimately and innately realize the delicate balance that lays between life and death, hope and despair, love and hate?  As a child, I never knew to fear death. Never learned to fear much of anything other than disappointing my family. As an adult who has been broken, fragmented, and hurt more times than one could count - I wonder if fear is now an inevitable part of my life? 

No matter how much I did not want to be afraid, I was....Yet by focusing on the beauty, and turning away from the cliffside, I was able to put one foot in front of the other. I was able to continue, and in doing so, I embodied hope.

Toto, we are definitely not in Kansas anymore

Mexican cops make me nervous. They make Jordan nervous. They make everyone nervous.


Yesterday, our power went out. Apparently, we never paid the bill that we didn't receive. #Mexico.

So, Jordan went over to a buddies house to use the internet, borrow some pesos, and pay the bill. As a thank you, he brought a bottle of rum with him. Unfortunately, he forgot to put it in a bag and while walking the 4 blocks to his buddies house, was spotted by the Mexican police. Being the quick thinker that he is, he ran into a nearby bathroom of a pub and stored the bottle under the sink. Then ran home to me. I was told to carry a bag, walk down the street, nonchalantly walk into the men's room of the sidewalk bar and retrieve the stashed booze - all without attracting the police's attention.
Thankfully, they were not standing guard outside the bar, and I was able to slip in and grab the booze, only to be called out by a few dumb gringos sitting at the bar, telling me I went into the wrong bathroom. Thank you for your help kind citizen.
Mission accomplished. It only took about an hour for my heart rate to return to normal.