2010 began like every year of my life will from here onwards – living in complete harmony with my values of life. Not doing anything to undermine them or living by someone else’s values again. When that happens it can only end in sadness or take you down a long road of complete life-wasting. This is why it is so important to me to remain single and free, and have friends until I am sure I have found the person who shares my same values in life, so that we can grow boundlessly together. I know that with the right person I would be taken further than I would imagine on my own, be challenged and motivated every day. But I am far FAR happier on my own than with the wrong person. I’m happy all the time!

I made a very difficult decision a few days ago, to let go of a four year dream of mine to thru-hike the 2,175 mile Appalachian Trail starting in March, to postpone it until 2011. It was a huge disappointment to me in a way because it was the one thing I held onto during the breakup, but I realised that it would only be right to do the trail when I’m not struggling at all odds to save up enough money in time and have a fully healed back by March. I still wake up with numb toes and left arm, and these are just some of the signs pointing to NO. I was trying to force this to all happen instead of letting it fall into place when its meant to happen. The AT used to be about flourishing, about happiness, then after the split it turned into a massive challenge. But I’m done with hardship now, I’m done trying to prove stupid things to myself, and the AT will happen only when its about happiness again. Now is not the time.

This decision has opened up this year in a massive way that has allowed me to be extremely free to follow my passions. I have six more months to play with. For two years now I have felt a strong calling to become a herbalist, to undergo full training, grow my own herbs, even have a herbothecary at some point. Seriously get into it. Have patients with Lyme Disease and other unusual, hard to treat ailments who I can work with and heal. But my RV lifestyle and my constant focus on my ex and his dreams meant it would never happen while we were together. This year I want to start moving in my souls direction in a big way, to finally fulfil my need to set up roots, a homebase to return home to for 4-6 months of the year, and also fulfil my constant need to travel, as well as the ability to raise the funds to travel without working. Currently I work and travel at the same time which isn’t ideal, and it ties me to the computer all the time. I’m so excited about my plan!! Here it is:

Figure out which incredible little town I want to live in for a few months of the year where I can join that state’s Medical Marijuana Program, find some patients, and grow about 6 plants to begin with while I’m still learning. I’m strongly leaning towards Portland Oregon but I have to find out more about restrictions on residency and taxes to be sure. This will give me a lot of experience growing and harvesting herbs, experience interacting with seriously ill patients, and allow me to save up huge amounts of money so that I can travel the rest of the year unhindered. I don’t even need that much money really but it would be good to not be restricted financially so I can afford transport fares to rarely visited, hard to reach places.

Growing marijuana should not be a means to an end and if it ever does become that I will have to change direction again and do something else. It will be a passion, and it should be something I feel in tune with ever day as I feel the leaves and check on my babies, learning every day from them. I’ll be tied down to the house I’m growing from for all those months while I save up money so it has to be a great little town with creative lovely people and lots of hiking trails nearby, and I need to love my job. I’ll have 6-8 months left each and every year to travel far and wide or continue my courses in herbalism or establish a client base.

I travel on a shoestring anyway, its the funnest way to go even if you have money, Craigslist rideshare for cross-country with a backpack and tent suits me fine, but I also have a strong STRONG calling to go to Peru and learn to build ecodomes there this year. And visit my family in Cape Town, South Africa. I haven’t been back home in over 10 years. I’ll also have the cash and freedom from anything that ties me down to finally do my herbalism courses that are very hands-on, intensive and require a lot of time away from home.

This plan rings true, resonates through my whole body as 100{a9f0d31f6175b3e4775e11a66c07db268fb74408d6095f6b46eeec420c0e9f62} aligned with who I am and what I am supposed to do. I am very exited about all of this! And today I found out I’m getting my first large tax refund that will propel me into the new year towards all of this. So to celebrate I am organising a ride-share to Colorado to visit my best friend and go snowboarding. The second of many soul-feasting adventures for this year, 2010.

I can’t stress it enough. Live the life you love. Wake up every day and love the life you live or change it. Don’t be afraid. An adventure even with messing up is still better than living a life that makes you miserable or is just blah. It’s never too late. Let it all go if you have to but don’t waste any more time. Be who you ARE, nomatter what anyone else thinks, don’t follow someone else, don’t become what someone else wants. LOVE who you are.