A lifetime of ADVENTURE

Descending into Chaos

Despite falling desperately in love with the west coast, I had grown to despise the person who had brought me there. Additionally, my sole source of income had slowly morphed from what I had hoped would become a corporate cash cow, into a series of mundane, menial tasks.

 

Newly single and unhappy with how my adult life had turned out, my drinking habit accelerated from social to downright reckless. Before long, the cost of my destructive choices began to add up, resulting in a car crash, a night in jail, and a subsequent string of financial and legal problems. Feeling purposeless and alone in a metropolis of millions, my desire for more meaning in my life had reached a tipping point.

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Inspired by the Unknown

At the request of a friend visiting from out of town, I booked her an appointment to see Raya, a local psychic. Although I had no interest in having my own fortune told, once Raya had finished with my friend, she insisted on reading for me too. From the turn of the first card in her deck, Raya absolutely blew my mind. First, she began to channel a shockingly precise and accurate string of truths about me and my past. Then came the predictions: one day, you'll travel the world, find love, and even be a psychic yourself.

 

Bewildered by my mystical encounter, I immediately began to learn everything I could about psychic divination. Eventually, my quest led me to Las Vegas where I met Sonia Choquette, my mentor and greatest spiritual inspiration. During her workshop, Sonia shared story after story of clients of hers who had created the life of their dreams using something she called the "Law of Attraction." During the workshop, Sonia affirmed that I too would create the life of my dreams, traveling the world and, one day, doing work similar to her own.

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Rediscovering my Spirit

Up until that point, few things in my life had been intentional. My relationships were in turmoil, my financial accounts were in bankruptcy, and work was nothing more than a means to an end. Despite the chaos I had created, I refused to give up hope. Inspired by the incredible stories Sonia had shared at her workshop, I set my intention on winning a $50 gift card in a drawing at work. Three days later, my name was randomly chosen out of 200 entries as the winner of one of two raffle prizes.

 

Awestruck by my success, I was ready to test the limits of my newfound technique. Knowing that my greatest joy had always come from travel, I cast aside my financial worries and, every night before bed, I began to imagine myself aboard trains, on planes, and in busses having grand adventures. In less than thirty days, by what seemed like a carefully orchestrated succession of coincidences, I quit my job, sold everything I owned, and moved to the Czech Republic to learn to teach English as a foreign language.

 

After a month-long backpacking trip through Eastern Europe, I landed in Spain on a Wednesday night with nothing more than my rucksack, a Cambridge English language teaching certificate, and $300 to my name. Despite my lack of money and virtually no Spanish language skills, I continued visualizing. Through several fortunate twists of fate, within just one week, I had managed to find two teaching jobs, the perfect place to live, and the perfect roommates—all in the center of Madrid.

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For the next year, I lived in bliss. From learning the local subway system, to enjoying tapas and taking siestas—every day was a magical adventure. Teaching was flexible and lucrative, funding my travels around Spain, across the Strait of Gibraltar to Morocco, up to Paris, and even throughout India on a two-month backpacking adventure. Though not always glamorous, over and over I had proven to myself that putting my attention on the things I wanted, rather than on the things I didn't want, was making my life better.