Guten Tag Sweet Friends!

This morning I am reflecting on what an amazing year I have had!! I have reread all my posts and looked through  my pictures, and I am stunned at how much I have done and seen in such a short period. To say that I’m grateful for this past year is a complete understatement.  I am the luckiest girl on the planet!!!

I started 2014 in Hawaii with treasured friends, a wonderful job, a great apartment and perfect weather year-round. If I stopped right there, 2014 would have been a near perfect year, right! But when I got an invite to move to Koln, Germany and share a friend’s fab apartment and travel around Europe for a year, I quit my job, sold everything and moved to Germany. Why? This has been a dream of mine for some time – to live in another country and see the world, or as much of it as possible on my limited funds. Having Koln as a base for travel has been ideal and living rent free has been a gift. Thank you Doc Gary for that. I remain very grateful to you.

I have seen so many beautiful places and met many wonderful people along the way. I am so thankful to everyone who has made this journey possible. All my friends have been so supportive, always reminding me that I still have a home to come home to. That means a lot to me. Knowing that I have not burned any bridges and that I still have people who love me in Memphis and Honolulu keeps me going on many days. I am lovingly and eternally grateful to Tam Tam, Linda Lou, BDub, Rickey Lee, my Pookie, my favorite husband, Toddy, and BD whose phone calls, texts and emails have been a huge source of encouragement.

This year has been eye-opening for me. I’ve learned a LOT living and traveling here. I think I could be a fantastic travel agent in my next life. Seriously, I have learned tons! But, I’ve also learned that even in your dream life there are still problems. Nothing and no place is ever perfect. Like Dorothy, I’ve learned there’s no place like home and sometimes when you go looking for something, it turns out it was inside you the whole time. I miss my family, friends, the beach, my paddle board, my convertible, understanding a menu 🙂 BUT, I wouldn’t trade this past year for anything! It’s been fantastic in so many ways, and I’m very, very grateful for every experience. Again, color me HAPPY!

Today, I’m heading to Madrid, Spain for a new adventure! I’m volunteering at Vaughan Town where I will be helping Spaniards practice their English speaking skills. I’m staying at a fab resort and spa two hours outside Madrid with a room of my own and three meals a day for FREE! Each week, a new group comes in and we start over. For three weeks, I’ll be working with a different group of volunteers and ‘students’ and all I have to do is engage folks in speaking English! Woohoo! Easy-cheesy baby!

When I return on February 1st, I’ll repack my bags with much warmer gear and head to Berlin where I meet my friend Tam Tam, and we are going to Norway, Denmark and Sweden in search of the Northern Lights. We are taking a Hurtigruten cruise ship from Bergen to Tromso, Norway and then an overnight in Tromso. After that, we head further north to the Arctic Panorama Lodge where we are going dog sledding, snow mobile riding and snow shoeing! I am planning to spend a few days in Berlin after that since I’ve never been.

In March, I am heading to the Ayurveda Healing Ashram in India for a 3-week meditation, yoga and panchakarma cleanse. It should be a very interesting three weeks and I hope to leave there feeling refreshed and rejuvenated!! I’ll be there through April 2nd and then…and then, well, my funding will be just about depleted! YIKES! So, I’m thinking I’ll head back to the states, but stay tuned, you never know what might turn up!

Whatever turns up, I know that 2015 will be every bit as amazing and wonderful as 2014!! Why am I so confident? Because life is what we make it folks! It doesn’t matter where we are or who’s backyard we are in, happiness is within us at all times. We make our own happiness inside. If I’ve learned nothing else in 2014, I’ve learned this.

I hope your 2015 is shaping up to be the best year ever! If it’s not looking good so far, then make it better by changing your attitude about your circumstances or change your circumstances. I am the only person who can make me happy. I alone am responsible for my happiness. Period.

Much love and aloha in 2015!