La Pura Vida

Viaje in Spanish means journey or travel. When I titled my blog Los Viajes de Sarita Osita I knew that I was embarking on a profound journey to the depths of my being. In order to access this, however, I knew my exploration would also take me to far reaches of this magnificent earth, pulling me out of my geographic comfort zone and into new perspectives lent only by new environments. This part of my journey has finally come. In two weeks I leave for Costa Rica.

When I first received the diagnosis, my initial thought was, get the hell out of this country. Not because I was told there was a number on my days and I had to fulfill some dying wish to see the world, but because I knew, just knew, that my medicine would not be found here. Granted, I have been a bit traumatized by Western medicine, as I think anyone would if they had spent the last four years in sterile waiting rooms only to spend 15 minutes reciting my list of health issues to a jaded individual in a lab coat, who would barely look me in the eye before sending me off with another expensive prescription that always did more harm than good. No, I was done with hearing “Well, I’m not really sure what’s wrong with you, but take this pill and call me if it gets any worse….”
I had to find answers and I knew that they would not come in the form of stethoscopes, florescent lights and pharmaceuticals. I needed to get to the jungle.

So I spent the next few arduous months in search of someone who could guide me in my search-for-the-cure jungle safari. But no one came, and I couldn’t just go by myself (my mom would never let me). So finally, I gave up. I surrendered my wish to the Universe, and with that I was taught one of my greatest lessons thus far. Trust. For everything we need we will be given in perfect timing, and when I was meant to go to that jungle, I would go.

Sure enough, as soon as I stopped searching, I received an email one idle Tuesday asking me if I would like to come visit the heart of Costa Rica’s vast jungle and work with a well-known Peruvian shaman studying plant medicines and receiving intensive healing work. Somehow, my story had traveled by word of mouth down to the ears of people who have the answers I am looking for and want to share them with me. Within minutes I had RSVPed and within days I had a plane ticket. The first part of my trip in Costa Rica will be spent working closely with the woman shaman, while attending all the classes offered as part of the all-inclusive healing retreat: yoga, meditation, music, art, dance, cooking, and of course jungle exploration. Following the retreat, I will find myself a plot of pristine, sun kissed white sandy beach, where I will bask in the sun’s gracious glory while integrating all the potent internal healing work I have done. And the whole time, I will be tasting the sweet sound of Spanish as it pours from my soul and rolls off my tongue. This is the language of my heart. I couldn’t have planned it better myself. My, how the Universe provides.


Let the healing begin.