No Doubt In My Mind

I can say with a certainty I have never had before that I know for a fact this is exactly what I should be doing right now. I feel so at ease, fulfilled, and confident in quantities I've never had before. I wish I knew how to explain it accurately enough for you, but I dont think I can.

For the first time in my life I am able to strike up conversation with complete strangers, a talent I have never possessed before. I am wide open, willing to talk with them about anything at all. It's what I have always wanted to be able to do, but never knew how; and yet somehow since stepping into the Atlanta airport I have magically had it. Meeting new people every day, hearing their stories, talking philosophy and goals or just bullshitting. I know that this is what my trip is about. It's not just seeing all the sights across the globe, it's about meeting and connecting with the people.

For the first time in my life I have gone out into a city I have hardly any knowledge of, with no one there with me, and wandered without any real goal in mind just to see what happens. It has been such a pleasure allowing myself to saunter along. Truly, I have become sauntering mayhem and it is a glorious state of being!

Hey look! There I am!

For example this morning I hung out at the house for awhile just chatting with my friends online and slowly waking up. Then I decided I needed to go to the post office to buy stamps, so I look up on google maps how to get there, just half a mile down the road from where I am. Along the way I come across a small local Farmer's Market, decide to check it out and I tried some of the tastiest honey I have ever had. It was orange blossom honey and the lady told me how they dont feed their bees sugar water like most other beekeepers (she said whenever inquiring about honey, dont ask if it is local, ask what they feed the bees. THAT makes all the difference.), she actually lets the bees keep some of their honey and are fed by her citrus orchard. The honey was that immediate sweet honey taste and then ended with a wonderful orangey flavor. Oh how tempted I was to buy some! It was so delicious! Then I bought this delicious mango drink that had real cut up mangos in it, bought my stamps from the post office, and on the way back saw there was a Buddhist Center so I decided to go check out what they were about. Because why not? So I go in and am immediately greeted by Mark, Emily, and Chris and we talk for at least half an hour about their particular sect of Budddhism, Soka Gakkai, where they focus on chanting Nam-Myoho-Renge-Kyo and their belief that everyone has an inherent enlightened being within them. It was a fascinating conversation that I could very much relate to and so very informative. I had no idea there were different sects to Buddhism! And I wouldn't have had any of those experiences if I hadn't decided I needed to walk to the post office or waited til my friends got home to drive me there.