Even though it’s thirty years ago, the smells of blossoming flowers and fruit still linger in my memory. The kibbutz was surrounded by flowering trees. During the different seasons you could pick your own peaches, mangos, avocados, and plums while you strolled lazily to the dining room.
I felt so at home here, and the fact that this land was Holy, I had no doubt. After work I started to write poems in my journal about the discovery of my Soul.
I was caught in the country’s spell. Living fearless and free; carpe diem was their credo, and it didn’t take me long to make it mine.
I loved to be in the presence of the Israelis, who practiced the art of living each day as if it was their last in heart and Soul. I couldn’t get enough; I wanted to learn more.
The kibbutz experience taught me how to strengthen my mental, emotional, and physical abilities to the max. It wasn’t easy, but it was the best “life skill” school I could have attended.
I learned to work at jobs I hated, to show up when sick, to dance when sad, to clean the inside of a thousand turkeys a day when heartbroken, to drive a tractor at 4:00 AM with a hangover, and to pick hundreds of oranges by myself in the orchard in the pouring rain.
The list was long but without regrets.
However, the biggest lesson I learned was that the Universe supports you always, no matter what! And carpe diem became my credo.
Thirty years later, as a business owner, I am faced with the “same” challenges.
Little did I know that having your own business gives you all the life lessons you yet have to learn. Especially when you stretch yourself and leave the safety zone.
Your emotional, mental, and physical strength is tested just like mine in the kibbutz.
Sometimes in doing so, I sigh and secretly want to make a U-turn to full-time motherhood. I ask myself why I would create the extra stress and stick my neck out in a much BIGGER way.
But I must. There’s no holding back when you follow the path of your Soul.
Your Soul is always one step ahead of you. Feeling uncomfortable is a sign of growth.
However, the biggest lessons I learned so many years ago in the kibbutz still ring true today. And it’s a timeless truth.
The Universe supports you always, no matter what!
Carpe Diem!
Saskia
