Costa Rica with WeJourney.co/

"We are only here on the land for a few decades. Use every day to bring joy and not greed to our tired land so full of anguish."

- Dorothy Stang, S.N.D. de N.

I want to lead a life that cultivates beauty and reveals passion in all that I do. In Costa Rica I met a man named Fabio, we called him Don Fabio, who does exactly that. His life is simple: till the soil of the earth. He is a farmer and has the face, the hands, the heart to prove it. His is a labor of love. He provides for his rural neighbors, is a safe refuge for anyone to come and go, and tends the ground he is given with patience and care. Partnered with Techo, a Latin-American owned building non-profit, our group got to build him a home so he can rest without fear of his floor flooding. He is a cultivator of beauty and it is magic.

There are things each of us long for; connection, empathy, beauty. Things that draw us together. Going to a foreign country widens your eyes to see we have more in common than we have that separates us. This trip was organized by WeJourney with community in mind. WeJourney is a company that seeks to put likeminded people together to do good. They want to create an environment where you can travel with purpose, to connect with both those you go to serve and those you travel with.

The week in Costa Rica took us from San Jose to Limon to Puerto Viejo. We made new and deep friends through labor and rest. We showed up. We faced challenges and expanded our capacity just by being there. Our spheres of influence differ, but the heart that brought us together is the same. Each person creates beauty and authors their own story throughout their lives. I walked away knowing how to do that better because of of the relationships made on this journey down to Costa Rica.

"A soul flare is what happens when someone shines [his or her] light no matter what it is. In a song, a smile, or a well-made soup, they send out a flare of light that inspires others to shine their own. Soul flares make this world better."

- Annie O'Shaughnessy