I was lost. Somehow I had ended up on the other side of lower Manhattan, staring across the water at New Jersey. Which is never right. I looked down at the map on my phone one more time and felt my stomach flip. Tied up in knots and anxious about my first day of training at The Interdependence Project, I had walked in the opposite direction from where I was supposed to be.

Whoops.

So, I was a little late. But it was okay. A wise man (my Zen teacher) once told me that nervousness is simply another expression of excitement. If that is true, then, I was indeed very excited.

Just in case I have been at all vague about this training I am doing, allow me to elaborate a little bit. I am currently enrolled in the Yearlong Immersion and Instructor Training program at The Interdependence Project in New York City. Which means, I am deepening my meditation practice and my knowledge of Buddhism, as well as, gaining the skills necessary to teach and facilitate meditation (not to mention, meeting a bunch of awesome people who like to nerd out just like me). No small feat! But it is something very near and dear to my heart. I'll get the opportunity to travel here five more times throughout the year to further my training.

Oh, darn...

Chinatown

Brooklyn

The Interdependence Project

View of Manhattan

Lower Manhattan