Recently I arrived at a couple of major endings in my life – one being the culmination of my time in Rochester, NY.
This morning, I greeted the dawn of an unexplored new beginning… in Costa Rica!
I will be living in Costa Rica for the next 3 months, and from there, I have yet to unravel what my journey has in store for me.
I arrived in La Fortuna yesterday, the same day the New Moon in Capricorn commenced, bringing with it fresh beginnings, rejuvenation, and a major cosmic reset.
I have never traveled with myself to another country, let alone lived abroad for an extended time.
Predictably, the fear demon began to rear its head in my mind with the same old narratives that work with the intention to keep me safe.
The problem is, “safe” is sometimes synonymous with remaining trapped within the confines of the comfort zone where growth is merely a wish on a shooting star.
I don’t know what this new season in my journey has in store for me – and that’s okay!
I have made peace with the fear, and instead, I have chosen to embrace excitement, reverence for the sacredness of life, the mystery of the unknown, and the wonder of all that is to come.
Unlike many popular beliefs, I don’t believe fear is evil or the enemy.
It is our RELATIONSHIP to fear that can become problematic and cause many forms of dis-ease – mental, emotional, physical, and spiritual.
Fear as a functional messenger serves to alert us of potential dangers.
This is an emotion that once served our ancestors well – keeping them safe from predators, Mama Earth’s fluctuating moods, and other potential sources of harm.
The concerning factor in relation to fear nowadays is how easily the amygdala (the center of the brain responsible for the fear response) becomes hijacked and manipulated.
We see in the collective consciousness how the fear response becomes activated by media, beliefs, and our own lack of understanding about how this ancient bodily system works.
After the fear process starts in the amygdala, corresponding stress hormones are released and the sympathetic nervous system (fight, flight, freeze response) becomes triggered.
What many of us are not yet aware of, or perhaps are simply unpracticed in, is that our thinking brain can provide feedback to our emotional brain and soothe the fear response to help our bodies return to a state of regulation.
And that is exactly how I was able to quell the windstorm of fear and various other emotions that were storming in my body yesterday at the airport.
I noticed the physical response that these emotions ramping up in my body, and I simply paused.
I closed my eyes.
And I took a deep, cleansing breath.
I identified the emotions that were coming up for me.
Fear of the unknown.
Grief about the endings in my life.
Anxiety about the unpredictability of travel.
Frustration around the current circumstances of the world.
And I quickly shifted the narrative for myself by understanding the messages these emotions were relaying to me about how I was relating to my current situation.
I thanked these emotions for shining a light on my own state of being at the moment.
And then, I actively released them by choosing to shift into understandings and states that serve me more.
I chose to surrender to the unknown.
I chose to be grateful for the endings and all that I have learned.
I chose to trust my own ability to navigate any unpredictable circumstances that may arise.
I chose to have compassion and acceptance for those who may not experience life the same way I do.
And I decided to make peace with it all.
All endings are gift-wrapped new beginnings.
When we start to peel back the layers of the cycles and purposes that are closing out in our lives, we find the many gifts hidden in the tombs of old chapters.
Our emotions around these endings and beginnings are valid!
They are important messengers that bear information about how we are currently relating to our circumstances and environments.
And we can also choose not to completely identify with them or allow how we feel to dictate the way we choose to show up and approach life.
I am choosing to embrace the awe of all Costa Rica has to offer me.
I am choosing to fall even deeper in love with my mission to serve humanity.
I am choosing to commune with myself in the ecstasy of greater depths of intimacy.
I am choosing to welcome the magic of guiding forces from the Divine.
I am choosing to continue opening my heart to connection, growth, healing, and abundance.
Thank you Rochester – for all the beautiful souls I have connected with, the learning I’ve received, and the opportunities to enrich my life in service to the collective.
It’s been a wild 3+ year ride filled with healing, growth, connection, challenges, and a shedding of all that is not me to return home to my truest self.
I am so excited to share this new chapter in my journey with you, with the intention of sharing both the challenges and magical moments alike that serve my higher evolution.
And perhaps, even inspire you to answer the inner calls that beckon your spirit to rise.
Grace Huang Coaching 