"Stranded" in Mexico
/Tom and I were walking on the Malecón in Mexico, enjoying the last ounces of Christmas vacation morning sun as we were headed back to the frozen north that night. I remember clearly how my energy shifted from bliss to fear when I received a text that our flight home had been cancelled. The text advised me to call an agent for rebooking, and upon doing so I learned that the next available flight out would be in three days.
Immediately my mind went into a panic, spinning with fearful thoughts. I was due back at school the morning after we had planned to be home! I didn’t have any more personal days, which meant I would have to apply for leave without pay. I would have to figure out lesson plans for all of my classes. And, more pressing, where we going to stay that night?
I could see my mind jumping into future fear mode, but the facts were the facts: our flight had been cancelled. How could I stop the anxious spinning?
I had the clarity that I could ground in the present moment and find a tiny little positive in the Now situation. We could have one last visit to our favorite taco restaurant! While there I could contact our current Airbnb host about extending our stay.
As we sat down at our table my ears tuned into the restaurant music. Normally we would be listening to mariachi over the speakers, but now I was hearing one of my favorite Spotify playlist songs. I know that Source speaks to me through music, and as we settled into tacos the playlist continued to match my own. How on earth was this possible? I was startled right into awe and wonder. I know the power of acceptance and allowing and releasing fear. The magic was already here.
“Tom, can we EBTIECHI this?”
We made a decision right then that we were open to seeing how this could unfold even better than we ever could have imagined. We let go of control and opened to possibility. The unfolding of what happened next still blows my little human mind.
The Airbnb host replied promptly that it was no problem to extend our stay, at a discount!
That evening we heard from friends back home that a giant winter storm had settled in our area and school was cancelled for the next day. The storm continued and school was cancelled for the entire three days that we were “stranded” in Mexico! Because of the power outages, there wasn’t an option for remote, online learning. I did not have to take leave without pay or prepare sub plans from afar. We also missed a horrible storm (sorry, Talkeetna friends!).
We were upgraded to first class!
The airline reimbursed us for our Airbnb and even provided us with a per-diem! This meant that we had an extended Mexican vacation for FREE!
We strengthened our trust muscles and the belief in the power of releasing fear and opening to EBTIECHI. I know that it Only Gets Better (one of my Spotify playlist songs from that Mexico trip).