I’ve been doing a lot of reflecting over the past three months after living in East Africa for the fourth year in a row. The title of this article is a reminder to appreciate the connections you’ve had and to stay grounded in who you are. Here are a few things I’ve learned from my time here.
Every experience and every person has a limit to what they can teach you. Stay in a city long enough and you eventually know it inside out—the restaurants, the nightlife, the traffic, the shortcuts. Keep the same mentor long enough and eventually the student becomes the master.
The key is recognizing when you’ve reached that point. Growth doesn’t happen if you stay where you’ve already absorbed everything. You have to move on to move forward.
On the other hand, some people and places continue to pour into you. They ground you, fulfill you, and bring you peace without expecting anything back. These are the people you can be yourself around, the places where your nervous system settles, the constants you return to because they nourish you.
I met a friend on a flight to Barcelona - Daniela, a health and grounding coach. She recently came to Kenya and we only spent a short time together, but she carried the kind of energy that brings peace into your life. Someone you feel good around. Someone who lifts your spirit without trying.
She taught me that words carry weight, that your body needs care, and that being glued to our phones steals more from us than we realize. Those lessons stuck. I can’t un-see them, and they’ve become the foundation of my own search for peace.
Daniela is an example of the “fountains” you want around you - people who pour into your life effortlessly.
Wherever you go, find the people, places, and moments that bring you that kind of peace.
East Africa has a huge community of motorcycle riders — boda bodas everywhere. One day in Arusha, on the way to the gym with a friend, we suddenly hit unexpected traffic because of a boda boda accident, and as we got closer we saw two lifeless bodies lying in the middle of the road.
It was a hard reminder that life is short. You can have big dreams and plans, but everything can change in a single moment. I pray that it never does, but some things are simply out of our control. As much as we walk around feeling like we’ll live forever, we won’t — and that’s why it’s so important to live your life the way you want to live it.
And on that note: don’t take unnecessary risks. Rushing across traffic, riding without helmets, drinking and driving — these are decisions that can alter your life in a second. Life is already short, and you’re not invincible. Think twice before putting yourself in danger, especially when you don’t need to.