When I first made the decision to move to Costa Rica, other than "Are you crazy?" the second most asked question was "Are you trying to find yourself?" At 26 I had experienced a lot in my life and had a pretty good understanding of who I was. The goal of my trip was not to "find myself," but to experience something new and cross something off my bucket list.
However, I must admit that in the year since my return I've learned more about myself and have experienced more personal growth than in the last three years collectively. I know that as humans we are always learning and evolving, but this growth has been so substantial because I recognize that I’m moving towards my purpose. So in honor of turning 28 on November 28th, I've decided to document 28 lessons I've learned in 28 years. Some of these lessons were learned easily, while others were hard lessons learned from not so pleasant circumstances. Nevertheless, they were learned in their own time and have helped me become a better, more aware woman.
Lesson 1: Faith Grows
I wasn’t raised in a household where we had to go to church
every single Sunday. There were no
weekly bible study classes or even a set denomination. While not religious, I was raised to be
spiritual by praying and believing in a being greater than myself. Later in life I realized that this lack of
structure allowed me to explore my own ideas of spirituality and to be
open-minded in my beliefs.
My walk by faith became a realization the day I turned in my
letter of resignation to the State’s Attorney’s Office so I could move to Costa
Rica and volunteer. There was no turning
back to life as I knew it, but in my heart I knew God would sustain me on my
journey. I chose to leave my house, my
job as a prosecutor, and my overall comfort to follow a dream and experience a
different life and culture My five
months in Costa Rica was amazing, but my return proved much more difficult than
I ever imagined.
Somewhere in my mind I thought that coming home would end my
walk of faith, but that was not in God’s plan.
The first four months back were filled with disappointment as I applied
for dozens of jobs with no luck. Since
the age of fourteen I have kept a job because I don’t like to ask for help, but
here I was now needing help and too prideful to ask for it. People who really know me wouldn’t offer me
anything, but would simply take me grocery shopping and deposit money into my
account. Through them I understood that God
was trying to rid me of my prideful ways and every single time I would be
humbled to tears. Even though I had no
income, I prayed a whole lot and God saw fit to make sure all of my bills were
paid and that I did not go without meals.
The next four months were spent trying to mend a broken
relationship and friendship that were neither healthy nor a part of God’s plan
for me. I was constantly praying for
peace in my home and within me. Slowly,
but surely as those relationships came to an end I could feel a weight being
lifted and my peace coming back. However,
I wasn’t happy and had to learn to accept things as they were and to move on
with my broken heart. I spent nearly
eight months trying to find my way back to happiness, but my faith didn’t waver
and I trusted God to work it all out.
As much as I’m a control freak, God hadn’t let me down in
those trying times, so I decided to let him order my steps. After accepting His
direction for my life things started falling into place. My career path became crystal clear and I
realized that I was no longer supposed to work for anyone but myself. Starting my own law practice was not
something I ever wanted or even thought about, but all of a sudden it felt
right and I knew it was exactly what I was supposed to be doing. God started putting the right people in my
life to assist me on this journey and every time I asked for confirmation He
was there showing me the signs that I was headed in the right direction. God was also bringing people back into my
life that were on the same spiritual journey. Whenever I was having a bad day
or doubting myself they were the shoulder I needed and could give me positive
words to keep moving towards my purpose. I also noticed that I liked being home
again and that the people that were supposed to be in my life were still there.
Then one day I woke up happy! I mean neon yellow, lemon
sunflower happy and apparently it was shining through because people kept
complimenting my glow. Things were going exactly how they were supposed to and my
personal relationship with God has never been better. I realized that He put everything in place
for me to end up here: happy and full of faith.
