Misogi and My Recent Trip to Guatemala

Previously posted on karlapamanes.com/blog

I’ve been home from Guatemala for a little over a week and I still catch myself smiling as I think about all of the amazing experiences I got to have and the people I got to meet there. ??

I know I shared some videos and photos from the trip on my?Instagram Stories , but I didn’t really explain what I was there to do. I belong to a group of female entrepreneurs and this year, one of our big initiatives was to go on a group service trip to Guatemala.

We teamed up with?Fundamaya ?to build wood stoves for families who need them. I’ve never done anything like this and I was worried whether I would actually be able to help. But during the week we were there, we installed stoves in the homes of four families in San Antonio Palopó. It was a beautiful experience meeting them and hearing their stories while we worked!

In a different group coaching program I belong to (yes, I belong to several ??), one of the coaches was talking to us about the concept of Misogi. This is an ancient Japanese practice where you bathe underneath a waterfall to create a more harmonious relationship with yourself.

The modern version of it is to do one really hard thing each year that fuels you for the remaining 364 days. You want to get yourself used to taking on challenges that alter your worldview and push you to do more. He refers to it as “adding more life to your life” (which I love).

I consider this trip to Guatemala to be my Misogi for the year. ?? I had a beautiful opportunity to serve. I got to meet strong and resilient families that live in challenging circumstances and I saw how kind and generous they were, even in the middle of their hardship.

I gained so much perspective from these families and I came back to the states with a renewed drive to grow my business. I want to be able to take more of these opportunities to help more, give more, serve more, and be more.

Of course, I wanted to share my experience and these beautiful photos with you but I also wanted to make sure I said “thank you.” If you’re reading this, that means you have supported me and my business and without support like that, I wouldn’t be in a place where I am able to do these things.

Do you dream of closing your laptop for a week to do something like this? Have you done something like this before? If so, I’d love to hear about where you went and what you did!?

If this experience I shared inspired you, check out?Fundamaya ?and all the amazing work they’re doing! Fundamaya was born from the vision of a group of indigenous Guatemalan, Australian, and American friends who wanted to help those most in need.

On their site, you can find different ways you can help (some without even leaving your house) so I urge you to check it out!?