Lesson #1 : Don’t put off something you really want to do or need to do.
This is something that’s always been said at my house, but procrastination, fear, and upright laziness still get the best of me at times.
My first full day in Alella, I was dead tired and decided to take a rest day. The second day, I took a brief walk around town and picked up some brochures and maps, trying to adjust to a routine and schedule. The third day, I debated if I should go to the beach. It would only for a couple of hours since it was a week day. In reality, I was scared to get lost. I was scared it wouldn’t be like I pictured. I was scared people would judge me if I used my selfie stick to take a picture. But, I pushed all of that aside, changed into my swimsuit, threw on a maxi dress over it and began my trek to the beach.
Guess what? I did get lost, it was not what I pictured, and I’m pretty sure the mother of two nearby was hardcore judging my selfie spree. Did that ruin the experience? Not at all.
Yes, I got lost (there AND back). But I was able to ask for directions and felt grateful my mom had raised us speaking Spanish. To those who don’t believe in asking for directions, consider it when there’s a big hill you actually don’t have to climb because the beach is actually in the opposite direction. Yup, that incline was intense and completely unnecessary.
No, it was nothing like I pictured. It was better. When I think beach, my mind goes to the pretty, sandy shores of Miami where I spent many weekends as a kid, watching the lively people flood the coast with laughter and fun. Not on a Wednesday in Playa El Masnou. There was only a mom and her kids, an older couple, and a woman. But it was peaceful and beautiful and a new beach experience for me. And isn’t the reason why I’m doing this to have new experiences? Yes.
As for the selfie shaming, although I think I was being totally judged, I can’t really tell for sure. The fact is, if I need to use a selfie stick to get pictures of myself at the places I visit, I am definitely using it. In reality, people actually think less of us than we think they do because they’re too busy worried about what we’re thinking of them. The faster we realize that and do what makes us happy regardless of others’ opinions, the closer we are to being genuinely true to ourselves.
Now you might be wondering, “But couldn’t Marysabel still have gone the next day…or maybe during the weekend and spent the whole day instead of a few hours?” Sure. In theory. Except for the fact that the next day it stormed, something that, according to my host, absolutely never happens in Alella/Barcelona. And the weekend was welcomed by a cold front, so even if I had been able to go, I wouldn’t have been able to take a dip like I had the day I went.
You see, you really can’t predict or count on tomorrow or the next day. You only have today. Don’t take it for granted.
“I don’t live in either my past or my future. I’m interested only in the present. If you can concentrate always on the present, you’ll be a happy man. Life will be a party for you, a grand festival, because life is the moment we’re living now.” –The camel driver, The Alchemist by Paulo Coelho