Why I Up and Left for Cancun in The Middle of My Semester

by: Lanisha Porter

Simply because I wanted to take time to live and enjoy my life in celebration of my 21st birthday. Born on the 28th day of February, I am a child descending from 7—the number of solitude, and seeker of truth but most importantly...the number resonating with completeness. All are very fit in describing myself. Sometimes my search for solitude puts me at an off-beat tempo with the rest of the world, and my desire for truth keeps me invested in navigating life's quest. And all of these forces work together so I may find my own completeness where I am perfectly aligned in spirit, emotion and thought. 

For my 21st birthday I wanted to do something valuable that could be locked away in my memory bank forever.

I didn't want my biggest highlight of my birthday to be staring at the bottom of a bottle. Therefore, I took my curiosity for truth and my appreciation for aloneness, and ended up in Cancun for 3 nights and 4 days. During my time there I LIVED. I enjoyed other humans for nothing more than just crossing my path, I immersed my myself in unfamiliar culture, I learned new Spanish, I trusted others out of necessity, I snorkeled in the Caribbean Sea, I rode in a speed boat, zip lined over the Selvatica Jungle, made time to splash full throttle into a Cenote of emerald green waters measuring 25ft deep, drank margaritas and daiquiris ocean side, went partying on the strip, slept-in without being disturbed, ate great seafood, took pictures, and just did whatever Lanisha wanted to do. I set out to have a pleasant experience and the spirit of the universe honored my hearts desires. I got an experience I can always reference back to when I need courage to be fearless and feel free.
 
Most of my life I have been conditioned to be afraid...afraid of getting it wrong, afraid of failing, afraid to be alone, and afraid to venture into the unknown. I was told it wasn’t the best idea to travel to a place like Mexico alone, and was offered the ideas that the worst would happen to me. I was told I might be snatched up and thrown into human trafficking, I’d be raped, and other craziness. But this trip allowed me to rebel against being afraid.
 
It was liberating to repaint the way I saw the world and even other humans. Often, we subconsciously paint our entire worldview with broad strokes of biases. And suddenly our perception of an entire group is informed by the opinions we have just of a subgroup. Turning 21 for me not only meant more fun, but it also meant more social responsibility as a global citizen. I am happy that I could travel to a new corner of the world and find a new truth to add to my collection. I am happy I got to live and create an experience I'll never forget.