On a whim, after quarantining and recovering from COVID and a last-minute work trip cancellation, I booked flights to Panama to go on a yoga retreat with my yoga instructor, Anne. This article is about Retreating to Panama for Yoga, Surf, and Sunshine.

Every moment of the retreat was absolute heaven: yoga twice per day, surf lessons, delicious food, time spent in community with fellow yogi-travelers, and daily journaling. Each morning I woke in the predawn light excited for the day ahead. This feeling of excitement felt like such a gift, as I haven’t felt excited for a new day in that way for a long time. I pushed the physical limits of my body and delighted in feeling sore again. Throughout the retreat, whether I was journalling, reading, practicing yoga, or surfing, I knew I was where I needed to be. This turned into a personal mantra: “I am where I need to be. I am where I need to be.”

After two years of COVID, time has started to blur. Did Taylor Swift release her Folklore album last summer? No, summer 2020. Did we go to Asheville in fall 2021? No, fall 2020. Many days working remotely from home began to feel the same. Their rhythm (wake, meditate, run, tea, work, read, work, walk, work, yoga, TV, read, sleep, repeat) began to feel routine to the point of eerie similarity, each day a repeat of the last. My own personal, 21st century Groundhog Day. 

Despite the time warp that it induced, my COVID-pause on ‘normal life’ allowed me to step back and ask myself a question that I continued to reflect on in Panama: How do I want to spend my time? Are the activities I do worth contracting COVID for? Again and again I have posed this question to myself, first to my brain, then to my heart, then to my deepest self, my soul. The longer I reflected on this question the more it transformed into: What does it mean to live a good life?

After a week of thoughtful reflection, meditation, and yoga in Santa Catalina, Panama, I arrived at the conclusion that a good life also is a thoughtful, intentional one, a life lived on purpose. While abroad I took the time to assess what I do, how I spend my time, and who I spend it with.

For me, a good life must include:

• family

• friends

• activity (yoga, running, surfing, hiking)

• introspective alone time

• adventure

• novelty

• good food

• personal growth

• love

• kindness

Now that I’ve returned home, I know that I need to make more space for these must-haves. This retreat underscored for me how important novelty and adventure are to my mental health. Novelty infuses my life with pure magic, and I regularly need to try new activities (like surfing), new recipes, and new podcasts to feel alive. With each novelty comes a thrill at the realization that “firsts” are so unique.

Sarah-in-Panama and Sarah-in-America are the same person.

However, surrounded by the warmth and sea breeze of Panama, I found it easy to make space for novelty, joy, meditation, and tranquil self-reflection. I had no real responsibilities or stressors. Everything in my life at home was on-hold until I returned home. My return home, my return to my routine and to the bitter cold of winter, has already asked me to assert the life I want to lead all of the time, not just on vacation, not just when it’s easy.

To answer for myself ‘how can I live a good life’ seems more important now than ever. The practice of yoga and meditation, which I can do wherever I am in the world, frees my mind to tackle these big questions through the lens of mindfulness. My answer to these big questions may change over time — and that is fine, expected even — but now I know what adjustments I need to make to live a more thoughtful, fun, and exciting life right now.

Sarah

Check out more from Sarah by heading to her Wondering Soul website HERE!