Irie.

I have only traveled outside of the United States twice in my entire life. I am not writing this blog as an experienced world traveler, but merely as a human being who travels through life with eyes wide open. I love to experience different cultures and I adore seeing people in their natural spaces. I’m not one for commercialized establishments and I don’t enjoy the tourist attractions as much as I enjoy stumbling upon real moments and people just simply living within their environment. I like the rawness and the unplanned days and just looking around while feeling grateful to reside in their space for a brief moment in time. Jamaica was nothing less than beautiful and gosh, I adored it wholeheartedly.

I remember getting off of the plane and entering the bus which would take us to our destination for the next several days and I remember the smile upon the drivers face. Happiness in every single twist and turn of the roads and such an openness to all of our questions. He was born and raised on the island and this was his home. He spoke of it fondly and honestly and with such strong regard that it was nearly impossible to not love it straight away just as he did. There were areas of poverty and areas of wealth and areas of in between. Every parish was just as beautiful as the next, regardless of the economic status. I noticed a string of unfinished homes and I immediately thought that they had run out of funding and stopped construction until they could afford it. Not the case. In Jamaica, you pay taxes on the land and not on the home. Houses are built in single story and they are occupied by a family until other family members move in and they build up. Very quickly, those unfinished homes resembled to me a family unit and a very strong one at that. Beautiful to see the strength in familial bonds and knowing that they will grow together amongst a myriad of generations in one structure alone. Captivating.

We mostly stayed at the resort and took some time to just relax and to check out from the real world for a bit. We ate, we drank, we lounged by the ocean and just took it all in. I needed to pick up a souvenir for my daughter so as we walked back inside to the resort, there were some locals selling jewelry and such on the other side of the fence. We stopped to pay them respect and gosh, their creations were drop dead gorgeous. They were not manufactured in a factory. No two were alike. Made with love. I asked if they were busy that day and they said we were their first sale. We paid $25 for a necklace, a bracelet and a magnet. That $25 was everything to them and they appreciated it so very much. It meant that they could eat, it meant that they could buy more supplies, and it meant that they could provide to their families. And oh my goodness, their smiles were everything. I’m awfully glad we stopped so that we could be in their happy space for a few minutes because my goodness, it felt really nice.

The last day were there, we were ready to go on an excursion to Blue Mountain which is Jamaica’s longest mountain range. We woke up to a very heavy rain and we were uncertain if the excursion would be called off or not. We knew that we had two choices. We could stay inside at the resort all day just watching it pour, or we could adventure a bit and take in some of the beauty of the island. We chose the latter and oh my heart, I’m so glad we did. We traveled by bus half way up the mountain where we stopped for some brunch and some Blue Mountain coffee. We learned about the plantation and we were able to see how coffee beans are roasted from start to finish. Blue Mountain coffee is one of the rarest of the world and it is costly because the space on the mountain is limited and the demand is so high. Many of the locals still harvest their own beans and roast them on an open fire and grind them themselves. If you ever get the chance to see for your own eyes how something is made, please do so. It makes you appreciate the product that much more because you recognize the time and the love that it takes to produce it and we should do more of that. I think there is a such a disconnect between us and the food and beverages that we ingest into our bodies and we should become a little more aware. I appreciate now more than ever the hands who make it and the soil which nourishes it. I hope I never forget.

Once we reached the top of the mountain, we were greeted by a few locals and some mountain bikes and we were ready to head down the mountain. Let’s be real here. I haven’t been on a bike since I was about 13. Not only was I a little rusty on my biking skills, but it was pouring rain and we were about to embark upon a bike ride which was greeted by endless cliffs. As we took off, I realized very quickly that I would not be leading the pack. I rode at leisure and at my own pace and for quite some time I did not take my eyes off of the rode to take in the scenery. I remember trailing behind and one of the locals who rode with us asked what my name was and he told me “Suzi, I’m going to be here for you and everything is irie. It’s no problem.” He sang down the mountain and every time I passed him, he checked on me and had the most cheerful smile upon his face. I remember biking through the small town and taking deep breaths in and out and it was the first time I started to look up from the road. I drove past some beautiful little houses and smiled with some of the nicest of folks as I passed them. I will never forget the long stretch of rode that I cruised upon as the torrential down pour began and I couldn’t do anything but smile and to feel that cold rush of water and warm breeze upon my skin. For a moment I felt as if it seeped into my bones and cleansed my soul. I haven’t been able to escape that feeling since it happened and I truly believe with my whole heart that I probably never will. Something happened on that bike ride and I’m going to hang on to it for all of my days.

Irie. It’s a Jamaican saying which means everything is alright and fine. I learned so much on this trip. I learned that we as human beings do not look up enough. I think we have a tendency to begin our days tired and wearily and we rush to beat the clock. We get ready so fast and we run out of the house and we are impatient in rush hour traffic and we get easily annoyed by the driver in front of us for not driving accordingly. We judge. We are lead by emotions. We want more and more and more and we forget about the things that we already have. We may not have the white picket fence or the owned home or the superfluous name brand clothing or purses. I will tell you this much. If you take the time to look up, you might just discover that you have more than you will ever need. You have your health. You have a warm home. You have friends and you have family and you have the gift of interacting with others. You get to hug someone. You get to smile. You get to breathe. And most importantly, you get to love. The constant rush of running from one thing to the next is perhaps in our nature, but maybe it’s time to slow down and walk. Sit down. Enjoy the environment swirling around you and the skies you are under because my goodness, there are no problems. Just situations. Everything is irie.