learning to love island time

The sun was blazing down and we were late. Again. I really don't like being late now but when I was eighteen I absolutely despised anyone that tried to make me late. And, bless her soul, Allie just couldn't keep up with my absurd pace. Sweating (from the heat or frustration, I don't know), I paced back and forth coaxing her not so gently to walk faster. Jahkai who drove us up the mountain every morning wouldn't mind that we were late. More time for him to smoke a joint and listen to Kendrick Lamar . He had 'island time' figured out. You could say I was still working on it.

As I'm trying to take deep breaths and channel the laid back spirit of the Jamaican people, I hear her say she's got blisters on her feet. Allie is stopping to remove her shoes as I swivel around to inspect the damage. The insides of her shoes are stained red and its hard to tell where the blister even is, there's so much liquid oozing down her heel onto the pavement. I grimace, and ask her if she can keep going. She asks if we can stop by the drug store. I scream internally as outwardly I slowly nod my head yes. 

If she couldn't feel my frustration before, I know she felt it as we began our detour for bandaids and better shoes. How could she not have worn better shoes? And why can't she just toughen up and keep going?

You'd think I was walking through the streets of New York City the I way plowed our path to that drug store. It was a colorful place, obviously attracting a lot of tourists. There were Bob Marley posters plastered on the walls and a whole section dedicated to sunscreen and aloe vera. I squinted as my eyes adjusted from the bright sun to this dimly lit interior. 

Allie grabbed a new pair of flip flops, a massive box of bandaids, and some pain killers before hobbling to the check out line as fast her beat up feet could take her. And then we were back outside in the blinding sunlight. I wouldn't say the shoes were much of an improvement but not having them rubbing her blisters made her visibly more comfortable. 

We actually weren't far at all from where Jahkai was supposed to meet us. I let out a sigh as we arrived to the assigned spot. I looked left and right but the dirt road seemed void of life. Where was he? I checked the time.

We were... early. Allie had already sat herself down to tend to her feet while we waited another 10 minutes for Jahkai to arrive. But of course, island time is different than the clock I ran by, so we ended up waiting 20 minutes before he showed up that morning. 

I remember how important it was to me to get where I was going. If I could reach out through time, I'd grab onto my younger selves shoulders and tell her to stop, take a breath, and look around. This is exactly where you wanted to be! In the middle of it all. 

It took me about a week to really begin to feel into my experiences there and stop worrying so much about the destination. It's a cliche but it's true. Life is about the journey. And when you relax into it, amazing things can happen that you would've been too busy to notice otherwise. 

Allie and I only shared this routine together for a week before she headed off. I'm happy to say that by the end of the week, we were walking in unison as a team rather than two opposing forces. She helped me learn to relax and to be okay with things not going exactly my way. I've never considered myself a selfish person. Outwardly, I always help when its needed. But I would be lying if I said there weren't plenty of times I was screaming inside as I did it. 

It's ironic, because I was on that trip to volunteer and help people. But I didn't even want to slow down and help my new friend. And she was a friend. Other than our immensely different walking styles, we got along great. So what kind of person does that make me if I only help when it's convenient? I decided that wasn't the person I wanted to be. 

I owe Allie a big thank you for helping me remember that there is beauty to be found in selflessness. That joy is created when we help each other. That life is meant to be lived slowly and savored like your favorite dessert. All the sweetest parts are in between where you are and where you're going. Moving faster just jumps you to the end quicker and where is the joy in that? You'll miss out on your whole life if you're always looking ahead.