Om My Goodness

Journeys are sometimes much further away than you think.  While a flight from Dallas to Los Angeles only takes three and a half hours, it has taken me years to get here. The important part is I finally arrived and I am bristling with anticipation for what's to come.

Long before the word “ashram” became the term du jour for the “Eat, Pray, Love” set, I was flipping through a magazine and read an article about a place nestled in the mountains outside of Malibu called The Ashram.   A description of the week-long program resonated with me for some reason, and I tucked the details away in my memory bank for future reference.

The Ashram is not a spa.  You don’t go there with plans to do nothing more than lie around in a fluffy robe with cucumber slices on your eyes all day.  It is more bootcamp than spa or, as I prefer to think of it, it's adult summer camp.  Over the course of a week, you and 11 fellow campers hike around 70 miles, do yoga twice a day, participate in other fitness programs between the yoga and hiking, and, all along the way, sustain yourself on a mostly raw vegan diet.  Thankfully, you do get a daily massage so that you’re able to hike again the next day.  You are also strongly encouraged to unplug from the world to remind yourself that you, your friends, and loved ones will in fact survive without hourly Facebook updates chronicling your every move.

In 2010, I decided the time was right to send myself to camp.  The week was going to be a springboard into a new fitness regimen and, above all, I looked forward to de-stressing and unwinding from the demands of everyday life.  Unfortunately, medical issues prevented me from going and, much to my chagrin, I cancelled my reservation.  You cannot imagine my surprise when my husband, my parents, and my in-laws conspired together to rebook my trip as a Christmas present.  I must have been a good girl last year!

Originally, I was scheduled to go on my week-long sojourn in March, but the timing was not right with the start of my new business.  And then I was convinced I would have to cancel my trip altogether when my right arm tried to derail my plans.   Thankfully, my surgeon gave his blessing (that was a huge surprise!) and Guido and my business partners encouraged me to go enjoy myself before I went under the knife again.

So, after traversing many obstacles, I am excited to finally arrive at my destination and I am looking forward to the challenges that lie ahead.  I ditched my caffeine habit in preparation for what’s to come and I am armed with sunscreen and hiking shoes.  As I packed my bags last night, it did remind me of my Girl Scout days, except a Camelpak is the new canteen and I didn’t have to sew labels with my name on them into all of my clothes.    Hmmm, I wonder if we’ll make vegan s’mores by the campfire…