when things don't go as planned

Unfortunately, I was unwell for 3/3 weeks I was in Thailand.

I managed to (somewhat) come back to life using a combination of tiger balm, menthol inhalers, spicy tom yum, veggie tom kha gai, short walks through buzzing night markets, and a visit to the hospital.

While being sick alone in a foreign country isn’t ideal, the experience brought with it precious reminders. The most important—predictable, yet surprisingly easy to forget—is the practice of daily, fervent appreciation for being healthy. Our miraculous bodies deserve constant recognition for their constant, silent, ever-present devotion to our human existence. No, really.

A close second is adaptability. This sometimes means letting go of the plans made when bursting with energy, curiosity, and the delusional belief that it’s possible to see an entire country in a couple of weeks. Instead, it might mean staying in bed watching an entire K-drama, or even cutting the trip short to return home earlier than expected. All of this is not an obstacle to the travel experience but rather an integral part of it.

One must accept that delays, cancellations, being overcharged or ripped off, getting lost, feeling lonely, and falling ill WILL happen while being on the road for months. The key is not to resist but to accept these moments as quickly as possible, learn and move on.

After all, the best traveller is one who can be present with whatever situation unfolds, while meeting it to the best of his abilities—whether it is magically exquisite or utterly terrifying.

This, of course, is just as true in life… no matter how hard we may try to control, plan and tame life to our liking, life will always push back in her freedom, pointing us towards our own - the only and deepest freedom we possess: the ability to choose how we will meet this moment.

(***Luckily, my congested lungs didn’t prevent the Thai flavour revolution occurring in my taste buds. Had I even tasted a good mango or coconut before Thailand?)