Celebrating 16 years in the country I call home

I missed my 16-year anniversary in Costa Rica this past Tuesday, June 21st – which is not surprising, since time has become a very abstract concept for many of us. But Facebook reminded me by serving up this photo.

My father brought me down to Costa Rica when I was seven years old to visit his twin sister, who was working at the U.S. Embassy in San José at the time. She, in turn, took both of us to the Pacific coast, to a beach whose name I do not know. Probably my dad, possibly my aunt, snapped this pic on the day that I dipped my toes in Costa Rican waters for the first time.

I’ve been thinking a lot this week about travel, especially travel for women: our safety, our freedom, and the trips (like this one) that shape our lives. But I’ll save those more somber thoughts for an upcoming post. Today, I just wanted to share this picture and celebrate the pure head-to-toe happiness it embodies.

I love to look at it every year, because of the way in which the little girl is claiming all she surveys. And because of the way in which the sand just under her leaping feet is invisibly, but surely, claiming her as well.

I’m a writer in San José, Costa Rica, on a year-long quest to share daily posts on inspiring people, places and ideas from my adopted home as a kind of tonic during a rough time in the world. Sign up (top right of this page) to receive a little dose of inspiration every weekday in your mailbox; tell a friend; check out past posts; learn how to join my Overwhelmed Writers’ League, every Saturday at 1 pm EST; and please connect with me on Instagram or Facebook! To learn more about how to support Costa Rica during the crisis, visit my COVID-19 section – or for ways to enjoy Costa Rica from afar, visit Virtual Costa Rica.