I'm off!

Off to Honduras THIS week!

I’m off to far and foreign lands this very week. Further than I’ve ever been before. Not only is it further south than I’ve ever been, I’ll be immersed in a culture that I’ve dabbled in only very briefly eons ago. A week kayak trip with only a couple of hours in the Loreto market hardly qualifies as encountering a culture. Sure, I paddled several hours a day on the Gulf of California, but we pretty much stayed with our University of Calgary-led group.

Now I’m off to Central America, and not to a tourist destination. My family is worried about my safety. “What are your emergency contact numbers?” they ask. “Be careful,” they warn. “What are the health considerations?” I wonder. I HATE needles unless they are in my hands, and not meant for me. How much cash should I carry? I understand Traveller’s Checks aren’t used much anymore.

Stepping off into the unknown heightens the anxiety level. My own, I confess, and those who care about me, too.

However, I’m not going alone. I’m going with a group who has done this before. So many times, they have a handbook. They have volunteers on the ground there, making hotel reservations and getting ready to pick us up at the airport. I won’t even be flying by myself—I’ll be with several others, one of whom I know I know. One I think I know. One will have stayed overnight with me the night before, so though I don’t know her now, I will by the time I fly.

So what’s my problem?

I need to remember to trust. Just like when I stepped off the high tower in the ropes course a year and a half ago, I need to focus not on my big step into the unknown, but on those helping me get there safely. Then I can relax—at least a little.