Pura Vida

I'm in Costa Rica with my best friend and my beautiful daughters.  We are here for a month; something that seems both extravagant and yet absolutely necessary as a way to escape many of the stressful things I have been focused on for the last few months.  It's beautiful here, and the people and the culture are renewing to the spirit.  There is a joy they exude in their daily lives despite how simply they live.  A happiness that settles in your bones when you realize you can be happy with so much less.  A friend told us of a survey recently published in which Costa Rica was rated number 1 of the happiest places to live. It is easy to see why and get lulled into the idea of leaving all of your old life behind and starting over here.  Afterall, the country's motto is Pura Vida: the pure life.  It really seems like a little slice of heaven here.

Strangely we left on the 2 year anniversary of his death and somehow when I booked the flights I didn't make the connection in my head about the date.  But now I think I might make it a yearly tradition to be here on the anniversary. It's peaceful, and calm, and restorative.  It's the closest to heaven I can get...la pura vida.