Erika came on one of my trips two years ago…
American. Grandmother of four. Five children. A life absolutely full of people who needed her. Her aunt had just died at 99 and left her a house. She’d spent months sorting through decades of someone else’s life while managing her own. When we first met, I could hear it in her voice – that bone-tired sound of someone who hasn’t stopped in years.
On day five, we were at Lone Tree Wilderness Camp in Botswana. No fences. No other tourists. Just us, the canvas tents, and whatever wildlife decides to wander through. I’d learned by then not to over-schedule Erika. She’s an introvert in a group setting – she needed space. So when she said she wasn’t coming on the morning game drive, I just said “perfect.”
Later that afternoon, I found her still on her tent porch.
She’d been sitting there for two hours. Just watching elephants. Not photographing them for Instagram. Not journaling about them. Not doing anything except watching a family of elephants move through the clearing in front of her tent.
When she finally came to dinner that night, she looked…different.
She told me later: “That was one of the biggest moments of change for me. This real harmony connection. Really slowing down. Really watching them. I don’t think I’d sat still for two hours in my entire adult life.”
Here’s what she didn’t expect:
She thought she’d come home and slot back into her old life. She didn’t.
She is now returning since this trip. She’s coming with me to Uganda in August. And in 2027, she’s bringing a whole group of friends –because when she got home and emailed 18 women about my trips, three said yes within days.
All three have experienced profound loss. One just lost a son. One’s husband died from Parkinson’s. One’s recovering from breast cancer.
They all knew they needed this. The same way Erika knew.
So here’s my question for you…
What would happen if you gave yourself two hours to just sit? To not be needed by anyone? Not to have your phone? To just watch the world move around you?
Want to find out? Then come with us on our Wild at Heart Expedition. It’s fourteen days of permission to finally stop.
We leave May 11 2026. Five spots left.
You can get more details about this prfound adventure HERE!
