Have you ever realized that you were Living Big, and didn’t even know it?

That realization came to me during a recent trip to Belize. And so our story begins…

I love to travel. It’s a huge part of me and I find a great sense of excitement experiencing new places and cultures. Belize wasn’t high on my list for no particular reason, but hey, why the heck not. After researching where to stay, it was decided a traveler should see the jungle and the beach to get the best of both worlds.  

We settled on Ian’s Branch Cave Adventure in the jungle, which is close to Belize’s capital Belmopan. This establishment offers cave tours, rappelling, camping, the whole lot. In addition to having the opportunity to sleep in a jungle hut, well, I was pumped. The supposed low-key portion of the trip would take place at The Royal Palm “resort” on its own island close to Caulker.

I read websites about what to bring in the jungle – with a trip to Costa Rica under my belt, I had somewhat of an idea; long pants, sunglasses, water bottles, and enough bug spray to kill all the mosquitos in a 10-mile radius. Check…Passport…check.

After two flights and a 1.5-hr van ride through the farmland of Belize, we arrived at Ian’s Branch Cave in a torrential downpour at the start of dinner in the dark. I was already road-weary, so when we had to hoof it a quarter of a mile up to the dining hall, I already started to rethink this decision. Especially after our guide stopped us as snakes slithered in front of our path. Did I mention there are no lights here to guide your way? Only flashlight by night. Yup. So snakes and then a bullfrog the size of The Hulk’s hand and then we made it to our Belizian buffet dinner, seated family style. Instantly thrown into the mix with other travelers, guides walk around to see what tours each guest would like to take the next day. I was obviously delirious because I agreed to go on a hike and then repel down a 300-ft cliff. I vaguely remember nodding through my rum punch and saying, “Sure, Ok. Hey, Freddy (the bartender) can I get another one of these please.”

While I ramble on explaining my vacation, you may be wondering why this applies to Windy City. Maybe you’re not. You’re expecting a #liveBIG story about me being Spider Woman and scaling the sh*t out of that cliff. No dice folks. This is not that type of story. While I have most definitely gained physical strength at WCSC, my greatest metamorphosis has been mental. Hushing the Gremlins in my mind who have previously said, “You can’t do that. You’ll look foolish. Do something ‘easy’ instead silly girl” and punching those a**holes in the face. Five years of coaches and teammates saying, “You can…just try…and way to go” and seeing my hard work pay off HAS turned me into that Spider Woman who does scale the sh*t out of cliffs, so now back to the story.

We greet the early morning to a camoflouge-ish school bus with canvas flaps for windows that luxuriously drives us through the lush orange groves to start our adventure. Our main guide, Ching, hands us our daypacks of water, helmets, and harnesses. Ching, it should be said, is in his 40s, wearing combat gear, and carrying a full-on machete. He used to be in the Guatemalan military, so I get the sense we will not die in his presence unless he wants us to. We begin our hike and I realize that this isn’t going to be what I thought; a scenic romp through the jungle – a walk – nice stroll. No, this was work. Everyone falling in single file line, watching where Ching would step, holding onto tree roots, slowly winding up-up-up, careful not to touch the “Give and Take” tree also known as “The Bastard Tree” riddled with thorns. On a water break during the 1.5 hr hike, we were then told to reapply bug repellent. We all mentioned that we had already doused ourselves in the stuff. The need became clear when Ching told us about Bat Flies. And let me interject – Mother Nature in Belize tries to kill you. The plants, bugs, snakes, all of it. Death around every corner and a hospital 50-miles away. So yeah, that’s a little disconcerting – Anyway - Bat flies, found deep in the jungle, develop after a mosquito implants larvae into an unsuspecting person. The larvae begins to grow under your skin. If you don’t suffocate the larvae by placing a piece of electrical tape over the point of entry, after weeks of development, the larvae will turn into a fly and either 1) have to be cut out of your skin or 2) will find a way out on its own. We all waited for the punchline. For him to make fun of us for falling for his story. No dice. He then proceeded to let us feel some larvae growing on the top of his skull. ON TOP OF HIS SKULL PEOPLE. We all reapplied. Then we had to stop again because Pit Vipers were in our path. PIT VIPERS OF DEATH in our path. That, in of itself, is Living BIG in my humble opinion, but I digress.

After a few more stops for water and the occasional “something will kill you” speech, we made it to the top and were given instructions on what to do. Sit, lean back, don’t let go of your brake hand. Have fun. And let me say it again, “DON’T LET GO OF YOUR BREAK HAND.” Maybe I should also mention that I am deathly afraid of heights. My palms sweat when I stand at the top of a ten foot ladder. I look over the cliff and my heart starts to race. I line up and it’s my turn.

Years ago, I would have found a way to back out. Not done it. Given into my fear. Not that Thursday in Belize. Not anymore. Instead I said, “Let’s do this.” I was put on belay and slowly started my descent…sitting…leaning back…and clenching my brake hand with a death hold. After the initial drop, I almost cried. Cried because of how proud of myself I was. I took a huge personal fear and said, “NOT TODAY B*TCHES.” After reaching the cliff floor, I was overjoyed with emotion. I had done it. I liken it to the to the first time I had accomplished anything at Windy City; when I did my first pull-up, double-under, ran a mile under eight minutes, to then completing Murph prescribed. Not only hard work got me to these places, but a #liveBIG mentality of “YOU CAN!”

From here, I realized my mindset of ‘vacation’ was forever changed. While sitting in a hammock with a book or laying on a beach with an umbrella drink is still important, taking new physical adventures is now, not only needed, but wanted and thoroughly enjoyed. I am forever hooked.

The rest of the jungle vacation included:
Spelunking through a cave system where I had to swim through tunnels underwater to make it to 20-ft waterfalls. Waterfalls that I climbed up and then jumped off, and horseback riding through the jungle with a professional barrel-racing, calf-roping Belizean guide. I saw crocodiles, howler monkeys, and more poisonous snakes than I can count!

Fully charged from my time in the jungle, I found my way to the Royal Palm island and said to my arrival team, “Thanks for the drink, what can we do here?” The staff was so taken aback by that question. They were typically presented with tourists who sit on the private beach  or go to neighboring islands to shop. Being one of the only guests on the island that week, I could set the schedule. They asked me the following:

Do you want to swim with sharks?
Uh, yes please.

Then I started to get greedy. I asked them if they had any conch to eat. I was told no, but that we could go hunting for it. “Alright, sign me up for that too. And can we go fishing? And, lastly, very accommodating staff, what about lobsters?”

So within a few days, my guide Hiro took me to swim with nurse sharks and pet sting rays, kayak between the shallow waters of the islands to find conch shells, snorkel and spearfished for lobsters and stone crab, and catch (and was taught how to fillet) the two beautiful snapper and grouper I personally caught. The lucky chef didn’t have to think what to cook, she would just take whatever we brought in that day and prepare the most glorious dinner. My favorite being the conch fritters and lobster and coconut stew.

At the end of the stay, I packed my bags, hopped my speedboat back to the mainland and felt a sense of peace that I’ve never felt after a vacation. I had conquered fears, had fun, and made memories that will last a lifetime. That is my foundation of the #liveBIG mentality. I thank the Windy City community for helping me get to this awesome place in my life. Especially those who started me off, Jennifer Ismar, who is now on the West Coast, and Justin and Sheena who have always been “Team Taffi.” So my suggestion to anyone reading this is to go out there and #liveBIG…you CAN do it…you ARE amazing…you just need to realize it.