A conversation about (3 years worth of) life

At the end of our podcast session, I was moved when Caroline thanked me for giving her the opportunity to review her life in the past 3 years.

‘I didn’t do as bad as I thought I did,’ she said.

“Most people overestimate what they can do in one year and underestimate what they can doin ten years.” — Bill Gates

At the beginning of our conversation, she shared her worries about getting her own place and getting a consistent stream of clients as a freelance yoga instructor.

30 pounds, 3 years ago

3 years.

That was how long it took us to speak to each other again after our brief encounter during a backpacking trip.

I sometimes fell into the trap of feeling agitated about not being where I want to be and forgot how far I’ve come along too.

In the past 3 years, by putting one foot in front of another, did we create a beautiful map that didn’t exist before.

I was amazed that Caroline went back to London with only 30 pounds in her bank account and restart her life from scratch.

If one can overcome that, that person can do anything in life.

Be kind to yourself for all the times you never give up

Caroline couldn’t afford to go back to Zambia when her father passed away a few weeks after her return. Grieving, she went to India to further her yoga practices and found the power of forgiveness in the process.

We had similar experience when it comes to being silent. When we become the observer of our surrounding, we dropped our ego and judgement — everything just is, no good or bad, no action required.

I loved it when she said that she doesn’t teach yoga, she teaches the students. It’s a great understanding of mindfulness and the ever-changing state of human mind.

We have both come a long, long way in the past 3 years, stumbled a few times and conquered several hills.

It’s amazing that a brief encounter made us a spectator in each other’s life and allow us to exchange stories at the next intersection point.

That’s the beauty of traveling — I learned that our human experiences are similar no matter where we come from, what our skin colour is.

The essence of all connections we make is love. For others and ourselves.

Hi, I am Isabelle, author of ‘The Art of Owning Your Story’, and I am building a podcast called ‘Own Your Story’. You can listen to my interview with Caroline here, or hop on to www.isabellethye.com to read more articles.

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