Monday was my final day at the Cisco office after 3.5 years of working there. What a dream come true it has been to work for the non-profit side of Cisco and be responsible for their CSR. Corporate Social Responsibility is the kind of work that resonates with my soul. Giving back to the world and making it better is my life mission. To have found that in my first job has been a blessing I am eternally grateful for. There are so many things I will miss, especially the friends I have made.
If you asked me what my dream job would be when I was younger I would have answered you this: "I want to volunteer internationally and help people". Today, I get to start living that, except to start, I am helping myself. I want to enrich my life with the principles I am after. I will be immersing myself in a dedicated practice of yoga, mindfulness, learning to make vegetarian dishes, and volunteer work. I am setting myself up for better things in my future. I want to be my true hippie self in an environment that fosters every aspect of that. I want to feel more than I have felt and be fully present.
To start my travels, I am going to an Ashram in Colombia where I will be responsible for 4.5 hours of volunteer work a day. In return, I will have a place to stay, food, and receive free yoga/meditation classes. The volunteer work varies between cooking vegetarian dishes, permaculture, and teaching at the local school. If you're interested in finding out more, check out the site here. They have recently added a video of the place I will be going to and I am that much more excited for what's to come.
Along my journey, I am planning to volunteer often. I find that the best way to travel is to volunteer. In addition to immersing yourself within new cultures, by volunteering you also are able to share, firsthand, your dedication to making their world better with others. I come from a place where we live in abundance. In this place, everyone has more than what they need and a lot of what they want, myself included. I am so ready to remove myself from this and live out of my backpack. I don't want to have to care about the latest trends or what matches, I want to focus on connecting to everyone and everything around me. Finding and making meaning of my life, instead of worrying about little things that may not matter. I want to throw my iphone off a cliff and not have it with me while I'm interacting with others. I want to be fully present and give my full attention to what I am doing. I want to disconnect, fall off the map for a bit and be lost.
I've made a pact with myself to continue to find work that benefits others. I need meaning behind the work that I do. I never plan to take a random job that comes my way unless it touches my soul. Life is too short to waste any of our time doing something you don't love. Seeing as how I loved my job and still left to go travel should tell you something about me, I am determined to live the life of my dreams and I know all things are possible if we set our mind to it.
I am responsible for making it happen, and make it happen I will. No one is going to live out your dreams for you. It is up to you to carry out your desires. Regardless the dream, make a plan to get there and begin the journey. Allow the challenges to come, and remember, it is only a test to see how badly you want it. Maintain a smile and roll with the punches. Make sure to check in with yourself along the way to see if your wants & needs are still the same. Your plan can evolve and change along the way, it is all part of the journey. Remind yourself this: "The world owes you nothing," so everything you have now is already an abundance. (Thank you Cole for the quote and constant words of wisdom you put out into the world)
I feel free of responsibility and full of gratitude for what's to come. Each day holds the possibility to change your life. I am excited to breathe in every moment in mine. Thanks for following along on my journey. Namaste.