Creating Sanctuaries

Sunset time in El Nido

After four months in the city, my life returns to the rhythm of the ocean.

I’ve been staying in Palawan for a total of three years, or a couple of months every year since 2017. It took me this long before finally deciding to move here permanently.

Permanently feels like a threat to my freedom.

I’ve been missing my freedom-based lifestyle. I was traveling off-the-beaten track for more than a decade. Now I am settled on my dream island, with a full-time job at a resort.

I like it, it’s super chill, unlike my past jobs which were at the national level. However I feel that this is just a temporary stint.

We’re holding our first event next week, a yoga retreat at the iconic Cadlao Island. It’s going to be fun, I know it. Any time with me is mission fun time impossible, with broken bones here and there.

I mean, if I am staying on this kind of career path — after all, I am new to this — I might as well steer it towards a direction I want.

Yes, I decide where this project is going.

It’s not just about yoga and wellness. This July I am also holding classes in art and culture as well, beginning with poetry reading and poetry writing workshops.

I was about to go all out with art workshops too, such as charcoal, watercolor, and nature art. But I was told to slow down a little bit. I was doing too much too soon.

I don’t mean to be hyperproductive. But I have eight arms. I really am just an octopus in a human jumpsuit.

I’m holding spaces for transformation in people’s lives, and visions are playing out in my mind. Now I’m laying the bricks, the foundations, day by day.

I am so excited to make them a reality. Actually this has been my lifestyle for so long. I just don’t know how receptive people here are. We’ll see for a couple of months.

After all, travelers don’t come here for yoga or art or poetry. They come here for the beautiful islands, the moonlit beaches, and the warm turquoise water.

Also to get drunk and party like an animal.

El Nido is such a magical place, in the right balance of rum and breathwork, and I want to add a bit of my stardust to it.

Now, I am going through a phase of infatuation. I am dancing on the tips of my toes and my head is in the clouds.

I know I can only get my life together through writing. Yoga is cool, but writing shapes my reality.

On the side note, I wrote 21 chapters of my first novel. What freaked me out is that the events in the novel manifested in my reality. I’m like, What just happened? o_o

My words are powerful like that.

I feel I can let go of the idea of freedom and finally settle down and have a family of my own. I’ve been toying with it for a while. It can happen, if I want to.

// 30 Jun 2025