Kismet
Kismet: (n.) Destiny; Fate
In March 2017, I walked through the chaos of the street with forever broken stoplights across the dusty, cracked sidewalk, to find a mirage of lush vegetation in the midst of buildings dressed with a patina of pollution created grime. Immediately upon entering the shop, I knew this place was special. I didn’t know then but this tiny cafe, nestled in what used to be (and may continue to be) the unsavory part of Makati, would become a totem for the complete redirection of my life.
Over the course of the year, I would spend days and weeks at a time, nursing the wounds of my pending divorce, nourishing my body with my newly implemented vegetarian diet for which they served vegan food, writing out my painful truth in poems on uncomfortable raised wooden seating, and meeting new people, a few of whom would change my life in unimaginable ways, all within the brightly colored walls of the Kismet Cafe.
But a girl can only sit for so long. Driven by my extreme anxiety and general unease in an unfamiliar country, which my home (Airbnb) practice was not cutting, I found Jivamukti yoga. Practicing Jivamukti was like nothing I had ever experienced with the interweaving of spirituality through asana and breath. Though I had always felt uncomfortable with chanting, I tried to follow along at the beginning of each class and by continuing to let go, I found myself in postures that I had only dreamt of. Jivamukti had awakened something in me and I was hooked. By the end of the September, I decided I was going to do my Jivamukti teacher training in Manila the following January and had booked a one-way ticket.
But things have a funny way of working out. As it does, life got in the way and I still haven’t moved to the Philippines… yet. But, 2 years after my initial inspiration to complete my teacher training, my home studio announced that it was hosting a Vinyasa and Healing Wisdom training. With a mixture of fear and excitement, I attended the free intro class and Q&A and was immediately drawn to the lead instructor, who happened to be named Destiny!
A few weeks later while on a dive trip in the Philippines, I woke to a: “Message from Destiny,” no missed call, just a message. Destiny had left a voicemail asking if I had any questions and like most humans, I happen to have thousands of questions regarding my destiny so then and there, I decided I was going to take this training. And as it turns out, the Universe could not have been more right in what it prepared for me. From this experience, I learned that you have to surrender and trust that what you’re creating will lead you to where you need to be. It just might not be in the way you had planned.
I’m elated to share what I’ve learned along my path in hopes of helping to shed light on yours! Welcome!!!!
The Kismet Cafe. Poblaction, Makati. 2017
