Last summer, I went on my version of an epic adventure.

 

Destination:                                   Greece

Traveling companions:            A rowdy bunch of mostly family. Mostly loud. And mostly fun.

 

This trip was a life long dream of mine, so you can imagine the excitement and anticipation I had going in. As an avid journaler, I promised myself that I’d write as often as I could during our travels, but not at the expense of missing wonderful moments that were in front of me. You see, this was the first time our family had ever traveled together — with all of us — and I didn’t want to miss a thing.

I did pay attention. Some of my most cherished moments from our trip were:

…my sweet niece, Lydia taking her first steps. And we were all there cheering her on!

…watching my father give his classic Zeibekiko performance in front of about a hundred people during an island cruise. It got even better when, Irene, my step-mother joined him for the finale. #aw #thosetwo

…the calm collected nature of my brother, Dean, as he drove a van full of squawking women over mountain ridges on roads too narrow for one car, let alone our van and oncoming tour buses. #eek

…the octopus. Eating octopus in every village on every island along the way and (of course) debating which one was the best.

…the way we stayed together and stopped for anyone who wanted to gawk, shop or eat. We did a lot of shopping, gawking and eating!

 

The backdrop for these shared experiences? Athens, The Parthenon, the Island of Crete, the Monasteries in Meteora, the Oracle of Delphi, Mycenae, more Islands, vineyards, tavernas, beaches and sunsets that need no caption. The ruins were places that left me awe struck by the sheer tenacity and ingenuity of the Ancient Greeks. They shaped culture and created elegance from a pile of rocks. It’s inconceivable how they did it. What an amazing place Greece is.

 

Over the next few weeks, I will share some observations and life lessons I gathered along the way. These are excerpts from my trusty journal.

 

Lesson # 1 – Trust the process – even when thing appear to be going wonky.

About 3 hours before our departure from Cincinnati, an e-mail from Delta came through informing me that our flight to Paris was delayed thus making it impossible to catch the connecting flight to Athens. Delta kindly offered to put us on the next flight out, which would have made our arrival a day later. My immediate reaction: freak out and start devising Plan B. I called my dad, rattled and confused. His response, “Alexia, we are all getting on the plane in Cincinnati as planned. We will deal with the connecting flight later. This stuff happens all the time.” That’s all I needed to hear. We got on the plane. They made up the time in the air. We arrived in Athens as planned with luggage in hand. It was fine. Trust the process. Especially when you have planned well. When you are in the middle of a well thought out plan and things appear to be shaky, stay with it.

Daily application: Don’t let fear (or bad news) derail your plan. AND make sure you have a voice of reason who will remind you that things are going to be okay when you need it most.

 

Lesson # 2 – Don’t over pack. Take the essentials, less is more.

I totally over packed and I knew it.  There are consequences when you overpack. Having too much stuff is not necessary, plus it weighs you down. When you are traveling, agility is essential. Furthermore, you’ll see things you want to purchase along the way, either for yourself or others. Having no room in your suitcase is a curse! As for me, I gave a bunch of clothes away, threw away half my toiletries and bought a second suitcase. Lesson learned.

Daily application: Stay open, stay nimble.  New creative ideas and solutions are always emerging – make room for them.

 

Lesson #3 – Say Yes and don’t look back.

Once you embark on your journey or plan, just go. Don’t start questioning yourself or wonder if you are doing the right thing. Only you know what is right for you. For me, it was taking nearly a month off from work without pay to make this trip happen. It was scary.  But, once I was on that plane, there was no time to second-guess my decision. I had planned well and now it was happening. (See Lesson # 1) Indecision is a thief. Doubt steals the gift that is in front of you because you are always wondering if you made the right choice. You made the decision, now walk it out. Even missteps can be corrected. Keep stepping forward and keep looking for treasures along the way. For me, it’s become a mental exercise. I have a post-it with “I wonder what wonderful thing will happen today?” on my mirror. I’ve looked at that post-it every day for the past year and a half. It’s now part of my every day thinking.

Daily application: Look forward and look for beautiful reminders that you are in the right place. They are all around you.

 

All the best,

Alexia