{photos inside!} Coming alive: Lessons from South Africa

I just returned from assisting on a retreat in the gorgeous land of South Africa, and WOW—what an experience! I’ve spent the last week reflecting on my time there tracking animals through the bush, feeling my heartbeat as a cheetah walked toward me, gazing at the stars in awe, dancing with locals, and laughing with other beautiful souls, and let me tell you, it taught me a lot. 

 I felt the rapture of being alive.

In the quiet moments, I found myself reflecting on how many of us live in a constant state of hustle—moving from task to task, consumed by worries about work, finances, health, what we need to do next, the opinions of others, or the uncertainty of the future. We often get caught in a whirlpool of “Am I doing enough?”

What if instead, we asked ourselves, Am I feeling alive in my life? 

Joseph Campbell once said:

People say that what we’re all seeking is a meaning for life. I don’t think that’s what we’re really seeking. We’re seeking an experience of being alive, so that our life experiences will have resonances with our innermost being, so that we actually feel the rapture of being alive.

Are you following what makes you feel alive? 

Or are you swept up in the anxiety of what might come, constantly searching for what’s next without looking at what’s within you?

We spend so much time trying to keep up, trying to be everything to everyone, trying to avoid failure and protect ourselves from what we fear. But here's the truth: You do not need to be everything to everyone. It’s okay to breathe. It’s okay to slow down. It’s okay to discover what makes you feel alive—and to savor it.

As I reflect on my time in South Africa, I realize that I felt most alive when I slowed down to savor the beauty of nature, when I laughed with new friends and experienced a rhythm of life shaped by the interplay of darkness and light. What we truly need more of in life is the experience of awe and wonder.

So, you might be asking, how do I experience awe and wonder here? The key is to start tracking what makes you feel awe, delight, and wonder.

A good place to start is by asking yourself: What makes me feel alive? 

Stay curious and follow the path to what lights you up. At the same time, be mindful of what takes you away from feeling alive. What makes you feel “dead inside”? How can you do less of that?

Listen, we ALL have aliveness within us. Your innermost being knows what you want, what will make you come alive, and the next track to awe. All we need to do is get quiet, connect with that inner voice, and follow its guidance.

So, I ask you again: How are you experiencing the rapture of being alive?

With love and wonder,

Sarah