Rafting Towards Happiness

April 12, 2016

I didn’t expect there to be rapids, which I guess was my fault since they called it white-water rafting. But I was prepared for a lazy river experience.

I first suspected that my lazy river experience was not going to happen when we were given helmets and went through safety training in case we fell out of the raft. My suspicions increased when I heard the shushing of the river. And my suspicions were confirmed when I asked our raft leader, “What’s that noise?” And she calmly replied, “Those are the rapids.”

I strained my neck up, hoping to see more river but no, the river definitely disappeared about 100 feet in front us. The shushing grew louder and my heart rate rose. I started to take deep breaths in anticipation of the rapid and to distract myself from my impending doom, I looked at my surroundings and took it all in.

I realized that people aren’t meant to sit behind a desk at a computer all day and all night long. They should walk, run, swim, breathe, smile, and experience this wonderful, beautiful, awe-inspiring earth we’re on.

At that exact moment, the fear just went away. Life was good. No, not just good but bordering on, dare I say it, perfect.

I was sitting in a raft with people I had met earlier that week and had started to form a real bond with (not easily done as an adult). Others in the raft I had met that day and they were doing everything in their power for us to have a fantastic rafting trip and even more importantly, I trusted them completely to guide us down the river.

Breathing in the fresh Costa Rican air, working my muscles with an oar, and looking down the river at every shade of green found in nature, I had an epiphany.

I realized that people aren’t meant to sit behind a desk at a computer all day and all night long. They should walk, run, swim, breathe, smile, and experience this wonderful, beautiful, awe-inspiring earth we’re on.

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And that’s big talk coming from a New York City native who considers nature to be the pot of flowers I’ve cultivated on my balcony (and then sadly killed).

But as the shushing grew louder, I made an oath to live a better life. Pura Vida. I totally get it now, Costa Rica. So as the first rapid approached, I tensed my body in anticipation and excitement. I gripped my oar, closed my eyes, let out a shriek, and felt the cold water soak my entire body.

I felt alive. This is living.

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