“When the universe calls”
Inspiration shot December 2025
If the only possible answer is “YES!”
Over the past months I have created space. I thought it was for rest. Life had other plans…
Do you know that feeling when something unexpected keeps pulling at you, in a completely different direction than you had in mind? When you dare to listen, something can arise that feels bigger than your own schedule. That is exactly what happened to me this month, and suddenly everything started moving very fast…
Now I am curious, what do you do when the universe knocks on your door and the only possible answer seems to be YES?
Mystery school
I thought I was going to spend this winter quietly in my TinyTrullo in Puglia. Until I saw a Facebook post about a Mystery School in New Zealand that I had heard about before. My first thought was, how wonderful that there are still temple trainings where spiritual knowledge is shared. Maybe one day, ‘when I grow up’, I will do something like that. The post talked about a 6 week training starting February 1st 2026 and invited anyone who feels the ‘calling’. I scrolled past it.
Then I scrolled back. A calling. It would not let me go.
“The soul shines through the garment of personality, integrating it instead of being hidden by its structure.” I could not stop thinking about it.
But I also felt resistance: so much for my quiet winter. New Zealand is so far away. And I do not really understand what the training is about. A mystery indeed. Still the feeling got stronger. I HAVE to be there. So this is what they mean by a calling.
Guess what, I got accepted and I am going to the Higden Temple Training!
Around the world in 101 days
Did you know that you can fly around the world for about €5000, 16 flights within a year, business class? Jaume, a friend from the Dynamite Circle, kept talking about this, so I asked him if I could use this to get to New Zealand. A return economy ticket easily costs around €3500 and then you arrive completely exhausted. “No problem,” he said. With his help I booked a RTW ticket, visiting friends and family in Canada, the USA and Hawaii, discovering new islands in the Pacific: Tonga, Samoa and Fiji, and spending a week in Japan after New Zealand. I will return to Europe early April.
I actually wanted to spend a week in Puglia over Christmas, but an economy ticket cost the same as adding a business class trip to South Africa to my RTW ticket. You can guess what I decided… Check my crazy travel schedule for the coming months.
Arriving rested, having new adventures, travelling in ultimate comfort. It is not complicated, you just need to know how these tickets work. One of the secrets is your starting point. I am starting in Oslo, which saves thousands of euros. Curious? I am forcing Jaume to write a book about this and teach a workshop.
Interested? Motivate him by sending him a message at @ubiest.
The magic of surrender
Ever since my theatre show I have been in surrender mode. Actually, it had already started before, and the show was part of it. I am letting the universe decide which direction my life goes, and it is often very different than what I thought or wanted. But in the end it brings more beautiful and better experiences, exactly what I needed, without knowing it. And more and more often, it brings pure magic.
Do not resist. Be curious.
I have been talking about this all my life: surf the wave! But in reality I never really dared to get on that wave and always stayed at the shore. Now suddenly I feel that I am standing on that wave and it is exhilarating. I wrote a FB post about it: Surf the wave of surrender.
Inspiration bites
BOOKTIP
The surrender experiment
The true story of Michael A. Singer, who decides to stop controlling his life and fully surrender to whatever comes his way.
Through that surrender a surprising flow of opportunities, growth & success unfolds, far beyond anything he could have planned himself.
MOVIETIP
Yes Man!
A feel good movie in which Jim Carrey plays a man who decides to say yes to everything, which turns his entire life upside down. By that simple choice he opens the door to new experiences, opportunities and unexpected adventures.
But blindly saying “yes” also brings problems. He gets caught in absurd situations and realizes that setting boundaries is just as important as being open to opportunities.
Congratulations on your book! 🥂
These books were recently published by retreat participants and coaching clients who used my Reverse Writing method.
PS, here you can find an even bigger selection of published books.
Exactly one year after her writing retreat in Thailand, Tirza’s book on Thai massage is published. I received this happy photo during my last writing retreat there. Hmmmm, last? I pencilled another one into my 2026 calendar…
Helmi Smeulders, the Caribbean Chef who wrote her first cookbook during my writing retreat in Mallorca, is unstoppable. With her third book ‘My Curaçao, a Culinary Road Trip‘, she won the prestigious award Best Caribbean Cookbook in the World!
Did you know...?
… that I also do manuscript reviews?
Even while travelling the world I can give honest feedback on your book, whether it is already completely finished or if you want a check along the way. I look at your manuscript from three perspectives: a critical reader, publisher and journalist, and I give concrete tips on how to improve it. That gives you an even better chance of finding a publisher or a successful self publishing launch.
So do not hesitate to send me your life’s work.
In any case, check out how to avoid the 8 most common author mistakes.
Where is Esther?
I spent the whole month of November on the Thai island of Koh Phangan. Four weeks in one place, and strangely enough I actually started to feel restless at the end.
After 3 wintery days in Amsterdam I spend a week in Madeira for the amazing Nomad Island Fest, where I gave workshops on ‘How a book can boost your business‘. It was spring weather there, 17 degrees and sunny. With 150 nomads in the beautiful Estalagem hotel, built on a rock, with a stunning view over the village of Ponto do Sol, banana plantations and the sea. With impressive speakers, enthusiastic participants and the motto ‘how can I help you today?’
Back in Amsterdam I will follow a special 3 day workshop at the Mezrab Storytelling School about fear. Strangely enough, I am hardly afraid of anything. And that is exactly why I think it will bring me a lot. Read more about how I deal with fear in my FB post.
On December 22 my Round The World Trip begins. It feels like I am in a rush to do all kinds of things and visit people who are important to me before I start the temple training. From February 1st I will be mostly offline for 6 weeks, fully diving into the mystery. I have never done anything like this before, but I feel it is important and that nothing will be the same afterwards.
Of course I will take you along on this experience.
My next Inspiration Shot will be written from the Pacific. You can follow my travels through my website agenda.
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