Giving Up

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As I packed all my things away in preparation for a three month stint abroad, I began to ask myself the inevitable questions - "Do I need this", "when did I use this last?" Some things were easy to part with - the ragged shirts from high school, dirty socks, bank statements. Some brought on a sense of nostalgia - letters from old girlfriends, press releases, prior travel journals. Things got tougher when I boxed up the cell phone and the laptop. My connection to the world seemed lost. I began to realize how compulsively I checked the time, the weather, sent text messages for no reason, checked my e-mail. I kept reaching for my pocket and wasn't sure this was going to go so well. Maybe I should have got an international cell plan.

The most difficult thing to part with, of course are my friends. Sometimes I take my friends for granted. I can't think of many groups of people who get along so well and share so much with one another. I realized this in Moab, Utah at Rando and Sarah's wedding. All our friends from Salt Lake and Denver were able to come together and get to know one another. Of course, new relationships were forged that will bring great times in years to come.

Sometimes you have to give things up to realize how important they are to you. You don't have to travel around the world to realize this. Try letting go of something - your cell phone, the internet, your ipod perhaps. If only for a day. You might learn something about yourself. Take a hike, give yourself up to the moment. Take time to do it and you may learn a lot about yourself.

A new teacher of mine echoed the words of an old friend - "Drop out - Follow Your Bliss." I was on the way.

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