Course Correction:To the Peaceful Blue Zone of Costa Rica

“I can’t change the direction of the wind, but I can adjust my sails to always reach my destination”      Jimmy Dean

Mindfulness is the practice of the ability to be in the moment, letting go of any judgement. It has been my experience that horses are highly intuitive and sensitive animals that flow with change and course correction, and live in the moment.

This to me is why I continue to seek knowledge and wisdom from the spirit of the horse. If you can observe objectively, you have the ability to change course and map out your course.Costa Rica presents opportunities to mindfulness practice and meditation, which Glenn and I both did daily with Yoga and Pilates. When my overactive mind is swirling with thought, I return to the cherished images of the beauty and peace that I felt in Costa Rica. I look at my photos like a precious jewels, and have a bowl of pink shell sand collected on our hike to El Chorro Falls in between Montezuma and Tambor, Costa Rica.

The hike is magnificently alive with wildlife, with tropical sounds and brilliantly coloured butterflies. It took us about 6 hours of hiking round trip bordering the reserves, including a lunch stop at Piedra Colorado beach, and a glorious swim at the waterfall.There is horseback riding available to this exquisite destination.

The sand turned from white and pink shell beach, to black sand, to a rich golden colour. The waterfall cascades from the cliff to a tide pool trickling to the ocean. The ocean breeze held an invisible current of happiness and health.

After traveling to Costa Rica, Belize and Panama, Glenn and I have made our course correction to the Nicoya Peninsula of Costa Rica. It is in a Blue Zone which is defined and described by Dan Buettner in his book ”The Blue Zones; Lessons for Living Longer from People Who’ve Lived the Longest”, as “Places in the world where there is a high concentration of persons over age 100, and there is a substantial disability free and disease free life expectancy”. Gilbert Brenes of the Central American Center for Population describes the people of the Nicoya Peninsula as having longer telomeres than the rest of the Costa Ricans. It is described in CNN news as “the longer the telomere the longer the life.” I have experienced rapid healing there, details which I will describe in a future blog. It has proven to us in the years that we have journeyed to this area of the world, how physically and emotionally healing it is to be there. This blog is about our challenging and purposeful journey shifting from a small ranching community in the Cariboo to the Nicoya Peninsula of Costa Rica.I look forward to sharing my next adventure with you!

Kim