Landing on Amorgos feels a lot like visiting a long lost family member, maybe a grandmother or eccentric aunt, who smells of potent herbs and has a keen twinkle in her eyes.

She rustles your hair a little too gleefully in the wind, and feeds your soul olives and goat cheese.

Her skin is leathery brown, harkening the power of the sun to distill the spirit of resilience. Her powerful gnarled hands like the branches of the ancient oak trees speak of a hardy self-reliance of her people on this isolated island. Yet she is timeless, so spry and vibrant that people whisper about sorcery, but she just smiles knowingly.

Sage grows robust and plentiful here on this rugged island. This is no garden variety though, it is a wild sage, bushy and haggard, with small curly leaves that protect it from the blazing Mediterranean sun. The intensity of the solar rays distill the oils, creating an unusually potent variety. It grows abundantly and freely, is not cultivated but wild crafted and gathered with care to preserve its vitality.

Sage in Greek has the root word salvia meaning salvation.

Sage in our language also means a seeker of truths, or one who has cultivated deep wisdom.

The best souvenir is a brand on your heart. A glimpse of a different paradigm rendered under a different sun but recognized by your soul.

I travel to find different versions of myself, to see the world with new eyes, and to live alternate possibilities.

The gifts of travel, much like the gifts of mindfulness, cannot be bought or conjured or directed because these are all things the ego does. The ego is us, our preferences and dislikes, the stories we tell ourselves about our experiences, our perceived strengths and the limitations and the never ending barrage of thoughts. The gifts of true insight require a release of the ego, baring it all, and listening deeply to the wisdom of the body.

I had a strong sense that Amorgos wanted my attention, my soul focus.

This rugged island is a powerful energy center, beckoning the seekers and sojourners to her turquoise waters and harsh windswept shores.

She spoke to me of resilience, like the potent herbs that bake in the glaring sun. She spoke to me of a past, centuries more distant than in America and yet still alive. She called to slow down to a pedestrian pace and get lost in the alleys. If I am lucky I might carry the residue of these knowings into the maelstrom of my modern life, but I will always return to the source. Until next year Amorgos.