When we travel, it is because we are seeking something. Often this has little to with where we go in the outer world and everything to do with what we are longing to experience within ourselves.

Travel has the potential to reawaken us to our true path and purpose in this life. It is as if the answers we have been searching for, seem to simply fall into our laps, or appear out of thin air. Halfway across the globe, immersed in so many new sights and sounds, we allow the world to touch us in new and surprising ways. When we let life in like this, what has grown stagnant within us is stirred, and the parts of our being shrouded in darkness become illuminated for us to see—maybe for the first time.

At home, we are so immersed in the familiar that it can be difficult to discern what is working and what is not. Travel offers us an opportunity to reassess our relationships, priorities, and practices, and to begin again with a widened and wizened perspective.

I returned from my time in Morocco last week. It’s a place I have dreamt of visiting for as long as I can recall.  It was one the first international trips I’ve ever taken and it felt like an immense gift to be there. I look forward to sharing more about the details of that journey with you in the next issue of Garden Party, but for now I will just say that I learned so much from the experience, in ways both expected and surprising.

As I was falling asleep one evening at our riad in Marrakech, a powerful knowing crystallized within me.  Seemingly in an instant, I understood that each of us is here on earth to act as a conduit of pleasure, joy, and delight. I have been speaking and writing about this for years, but I suddenly got it on a much deeper level than ever before.  Travel does this, it shows us what we know—and then some.

You are here on Earth to act as a conduit of pleasure, joy, and delight.

It is undeniable that each of our lives is shaped to varying degrees by forces of privilege and oppression. However, assuming that our basic needs are being met, our ability to experience joy and pleasure, depends more on the state of our inner world and less on our outer circumstances.

When we do the daily work of keeping our channels clear for receiving these energies, they fill us as naturally as the breath. Remaining receptive to them in a world where despair is the default, however, is an active and even rigorous practice.

When we cultivate a connection to the divine, both within and without, we are filled with the medicine of pleasure naturally. For some of us this comes through movement, writing, meditation, prayer, singing, sex—the list is endless.  We each have a sacred responsibility to discover for ourselves what takes us to this place of communion—and then to go there as often as possible.

This connection allows us to weather our lives through both the bleakest of moments and the brightest of times with an unwavering belief in both our own innate goodness and the generosity of the world beyond.  And it is always available.

So, no matter where you thought you might be at this time in your life, or who you thought you might have become by now, it is my hope that today you will find a space of sweetness in which to rest in the perfection of whatever is present for you now; knowing also that life can change in an instant.

We are always where we are meant to be even when the challenges we face feel insurmountable.

And in times such as these, we can lean into the medicine of pleasure that is ever-present, even in the darkest of times. Today, may you feel the gentle caress of the breeze in your hair, the grounding presence of the earth beneath your feet, the soothing touch of skin on skin as you take the hand of someone you love. May you immerse yourself wholly in what is good and watch it grow.

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Below you’ll find my favorite herbal ally for letting go of that which has grown heavy, and welcoming the fresh energy of springtime.  I’ve also shared a simple practice for reconnecting with the medicine of the breath, and I’ve even divulged some of my favorite secret places around Austin for you to connect with next time you find yourself in the Texas Hill Country.

As always, I’d love to hear from you, so please feel free to write to me at GardenPartyLove@gmail.com and let me know what’s on your mind and in your heart.  Thank you SO MUCH for being a member of Garden Party.  You light up my life and I can scarcely express what an honor it is to have the opportunity to share my world with you.