Dear Eve, In our communications, you have said you wanted to see many countries. You told me it didn’t even matter which ones – and I love that attitude. With that in mind, I would like to share my opinion of what people commonly call “The Comfort Zone”.
That term seems to convey a sense of peace and safety. Now Eve, that phrase (that belief) will be your best friend in your travels, or your worst enemy. It took me a while to truly understand the concept of The Comfort Zone; in fact it took me years, but when I did understand, I realized I had been doing it intuitively all along.
Let me start out telling you my first recollection of my intuitively acting on this concept. When I was in my early 20’s (that was several months ago – approximately 800) I was living in France for a few years – courtesy of the US Army. I found myself following a monthly ritual of sorts. I would go purposely by myself to the town square – and have a café au lait and a croissant, both of which were unknown at that time in this country. I would go to the same café – on the edge of the town square – and read the International Herald Tribune. I found a certain sense of ‘belonging’ that I did not understand at the time. I, much later, realized that I was subconsciously claiming that square – that town – as my new Comfort Zone. That was where I belonged at that moment. I was not ’longing’ for home, I was Home! I was firmly ensconced in my new Comfort Zone.
Years later I was teaching English on a Greek Island – Crete – and through a series of ‘somethings’ I found myself lying on the ground one night next to a half pail of snails that I had collected– with no one nearby. There were no city lights, no sounds of any kind, and not a single friend in that hemisphere. Eve, I will tell you how that came about in a moment. But in that instant, I was looking at the beautiful sky – more stars than I had ever seen – and I wondered, “What am I doing here?” I was 6,000 miles from home, no one really knew where I was at that moment – with the exception of the fellow who drove us there – and he didn’t speak English. Why am I here? I seemed to receive a message that said, “You are here because you wanted to be here, and have an adventure. This is where you belong at this moment.” Ergo, my new comfort zone!
Eve, I discovered that ‘The Comfort Zone’ should be taken with you – not ‘Left Home”. I have seen individuals ruin a perfectly good trip/adventure – by always comparing the current situation to what they left. When you make the present circumstances your Comfort Zone, you will have arrived at the point of ‘being at your ease’, no matter where you are. Then, and only then, will you be able to enjoy, truly enjoy, your situation. Strangely enough, I was doing that intuitively, but didn’t fully understand until that moment of revelation – lying on the ground on a Greek Island – next to a pail of snails. So, the moral of the story –is when you are packing for your trip/adventure – don’t forget to pack your Comfort Zone.
Your Loving Poppa
