Haad Thien Lesson Three

Being alive itself is intoxicating

Life is actually a drug in itself. Many people are constantly drinking alcohol or using drugs to induce euphoric states in themselves, not realizing that drugs just trigger our body to use neurotransmitters that are already in our body. The euphoria comes from yourself and a person can trigger those feelings by just recognizing how amazing the pure act of living can be. Now, don't get me wrong, I don't keep myself in a constant state of sobriety, but I do know that drugs are just a little bonus. In general, I feel quite good all the time. To see this in effect, just take one moment every day, drop everything and feel. Just smell the air; the world is full of wonderful smells everywhere. Just let the wind blow against your skin or savor the feeling of your morning shower. Just taste, truly taste your food, even simple fried eggs with salt and pepper can be blissful. Just look at the color of a simple tree leaf. All it takes is a bit of awareness and not taking life for granted. If you do this, you can actually live your life being high. It's simple.

Once I eliminated the stress of trying to leave the island, I became incredibly happy. Not like the normal, slightly better than content I normally feel, but truly happy. Admittedly, it is quite easy to feel super happy in chilled-out island paradise full of yoga-crazy hippies, but I knew it was more than the place, something inside of me was changing.

In general, Haad Thien is one of those rare places in the world that amplifies emotions, be it happiness or sadness. This might because it sits atop a bed of quartz. I'm not a big believer in crystals, but there was something weird going on there. Much like in the Byron Bay area of Australia, it's the type of place that stirs up emotions and teaches people lessons. These places always seem to draw hippies as well. I was never able to figure out if it was the people that occupy these places or the place itself, but there was something interesting going on there.

The first weeks of properly living on the island were all great; writing everyday, doing yoga, socializing with friends, swimming, walking through the jungle, dancing twice a week at Guy's Bar ad Eden. Just the fruit museli yogurt I ate every morning threw me into a state of bliss, and that was the first moment of everyday.

The happiness was cut short suddenly when I had to leave for a visa run to Malaysia, but it didn't take me long to get back into the groove. I got into the swing of my job at Spice, which is the highest end restaurant in the area, serving mostly seafood. My first few days saw few customers, maybe about three tables a night. Suddenly, after a rocking party, Spice took off. It was the place. Every night was packed and I found my job description getting a bit...eclectic. My manager went crazy and the owner Gae took over, leaving me as the main employee. Suddenly I found myself helping with managing duties, bartending, waiting, cooking and DJ'ing the spontaneous parties that were happening most nights. I had taken the recipes of the restaurant, tweaked them a bit and suddenly, eveMy social status rose in the bay. Every day was getting better than the one before.

Overall, my life was perfect, except for one thing.