I don’t charge my phone at night. Somehow in the course of my life I’ve gotten into the habit of only charging my phone when the battery is so low that the indicator turns red. Little did I know, I wasn’t only doing this to my iPhone 13, but I was also doing it to my body. As a full-time entrepreneur, there is no one but myself to blame for a reduced work output, so I always try to maximize my efforts each day. However, an unfortunate side-effect of working nonstop is prioritizing work and ignoring myself. I fell into the habit of not recharging myself until my internal battery was incredibly low, and this wasn’t only unwise, but it was dangerous.
In an effort to live longer and happier, I made the change to take a vacation in the first half of each year. While trying to figure out a destination for vacation # 1, all roads seemed to lead to heaven. Well, it wasn’t literally heaven, but it was almost heaven— it was Turks and Caicos.
Upon landing in Turks and Caicos, I got my adorable rental car and I drove out of the lot but I was unknowingly on a collision course with danger. I was moments away from a head-on collision with a car heading in the opposite direction. Somehow I forgot which side of the road they drove on and I drove as if I was in America. Luckily, like heaven, most people acted like angels and were accommodating of my ignorance on the road. I quickly calibrated myself to this new country and correctly drove to the home that I’d be spending the next three days.
When I arrived at the condo at the check-in time, I was met with the house cleaner who just stared at me. I said, “I’m here to check-in,” and she responded, “no.” I said, “what do you mean,” and she responded “yes.” Ok, what?! I said, “do you need more time,” and she responded, “oh.” Wait, what?! “Do you want me to come back” and she responded “don’t speak English.” Was she telling me not to speak English, or was she saying that she doesn’t speak English? Unfortunately for her, I can only speak English, “Nerd” and un peu de Français, so I decided to continue with English. “What time should I come back,” I said as I pointed to my watch. “Four.” I didn’t know if she was still responding random things or if she was instructing me to come back at 4, so I confusingly left to get something to eat.
I went to a nearby restaurant called “The Pork Shack,” and I ordered a chicken sandwich and two tacos. As I waited for my meal, the mosquitoes had their meal, and the only thing on the menu was the blood of Geremy. I sat there for about five minutes without realizing that a flock of mosquitoes was having their last supper meal. I immediately needed to avenge these mosquito bites, so I dedicated myself to killing every single mosquito that was around me. The more I killed, the more showed up. These mosquitos were flying towards me in droves, and they were impossible to swat. Worst of all, the restaurant worker was staring at me from 20 feet away because it seemed like if I’m doing in some masochistic ritual that involved slapping myself and flailing my hands in the air. Without attempting to explain that I was being robbed of my blood by bloodsucking thieves, I decided to return to the car, but suddenly my food was ready and I was able to eat peacefully without the ‘quitos.
It seemed that God wanted me to get the unsavory experiences out of the way at the beginning so everything would go perfectly afterwards. What followed was great food, phenomenal beaches, and overall amazing experiences. I stayed in the Grace Bay area of the island, which put me at the center of everything great. I was able to go to five different beaches, a great shopping area, amazing restaurants, and take a fun jet ski ride.
At one point, I went to a restaurant where I ate lunch while overlooking a beautiful beach. Although I had a full charge on my phone and free unlimited data, I decided to completely ignore all electronics and enjoy the moment. I knew that there wouldn’t be many moments in the coming weeks when I’d be able to experience that level of paradise and I didn’t want anything to take away from that moment. As I sat there and enjoyed the environment that I was blessed to experience, I was tapped on the shoulder by a waitress from the restaurant. She whispered to me that my meal would be free because another guest had already paid for it, as she pointed to the table behind me. I’m not used to this level of generosity without strings being attached, so I walked over to the table of the older gentleman and his wife and said, “thanks so much, but what’s the reason for this?” He said, “we just wanted to do something nice for you.” Do something nice for me just like that?! You don’t even know who I am! I thanked them and returned to my meal, which tasted even better now that it was free. Later in the meal I briefly spoke to the couple again and then when I turned around to say one more thing, they were gone. Disappeared into thin air! Maybe Turks and Caicos was actually heaven filled with angels!
After visiting Turks and Caicos, the country has won many superlatives in my yearbook: most enjoyable vacation, most mosquito bites gotten, most beautiful beaches with the clearest water, and best visit to heaven. Stopping to recharge before my battery was on 1% was a great decision and I’d advise everyone to do the same, even if your destination isn’t Turks and Caicos.
If you don’t take care of yourself, then you can’t expect others to. Recharge your battery.