“No Risk No Reward”

Thoughts:

This should’ve been posted years ago. but due to procrastination and self-doubt I never posted it so since I can’t travel anywhere over the next few months I’ll be sharing with you guys some of the places I have been able to visit over the years. Now let’s get into the post:

Someone recently called me out on my indecision (and my sister has been calling me out for the past 10+ years lol). It was a “who...huh? me? “ moment and not even ten minutes later I was mentally grappling with a minuscule decision. “Should I or should I not… What will come from these choices?” 

My mind has always been complex. Instead of seeing two choices, I see seven different choices and thirty different consequences (good or bad) playing out after each possible decision. 

Over-thinking:

a mental workout

I would love to be the kind of person that just makes a choice on a whim but my mind is always thinking. Working over-time, even when I’m trying to sleep peacefully, to find a solution to whatever is captivating or troubling me. When I do rarely make spur-of-the-moment decisions, I always immediately think “why didn’t I let the choices sit on my mind like a  cough drop on the tongue” and other times, I glee-fully thank myself for making that spur decision.

This year I turned twenty-five years old... Wow, I’m a whole adult now (#whatislife #whatistime)! I had the choice of going to Boston or staying home to do a staycation type of thing. A part of me secretly prayed to wake up in a whole new country like London but finances definitely wouldn’t allow for that. As weeks passed by, I realized Boston was probably not going to be fun. I would’ve been able to visit Emerson College (one of my potential grad schools) but other than that it would’ve been an “ehh” weekend. 

My mind went again to over-thinking and assuming my birthday would be crappy. Luckily, God is a hearer of our most silent thoughts and He answered my prayer through a random visit. My cousins were visiting from Montreal, Canada and they invited me to visit them in Canada for my birthday. I said “yes, that would be amazing! I would love to visit.” but in my head, the finance “chutes and ladders” calculations were beginning and the results deemed it impossible to go. Flights were in the $800 plus range (sis, that’s a whole rent check) and so my little heart was discouraged. Through relentless google searches not even a week later, I found a flight from Allegiant for $300. I got paid that Friday, bought the ticket in the early hours, and ate cereal and bland quinoa for that whole upcoming week.

No Risk No Reward

I was a little hesitant even after I purchased the ticket that something would go wrong. “My cousins might say they didn’t want me to come anymore. My flight might get canceled a few days before the trip. I might get in a car accident before the trip. I might break my leg on my way to the airport.” You know, just the usual makings of the mind. When the day came, I woke up early, got to the airport safely, and made it through TSA swiftly. None of the “mights” happened. 

(SN: I absolutely love airports! The hustle and bustle of the people from all over the world, all in one space. Some a little anxious, some a little angry, some pleasant and some talkative. You have it all there!)

I landed in New York, my cousins picked me up and we drove an hour into Montreal. It was so much fun: discussing differing politics, pop culture, and realizing how similar we are. My whole weekend in Montreal was breathtaking. The scenery beautiful, the people friendly, the food good, and my family so loving. If I didn’t take the risk of continuously searching for flights, I wouldn’t have had the reward of the experiences I got to partake in. 

Here are some of the places I got to visit:

FOOD

Fisshu Sushi Buffet

537 Saint-Catherine St W, Montreal, QC H3B 1B2, Canada

Agrikol

1844 Rue Amherst, Montréal, QC H2L 0C1, Canada

La Banquise 24th

994 Rue Rachel E, Montréal, QC H2J 2J3, Canada

Queues de Castor Vieux Montréal

123 de la Commune Rue E, Montreal, Quebec H2Y 1J1, Canada

OUTDOORS

Mount Royal

Montreal, QC H2W 1S8, Canada

Old Montreal

Gay Village

ART

Musee d’art Contemporain de Montreal

185 Saint-Catherine St W, Montreal, QC H2X 3X5, Canada