Insurance, Yoga, + Peace of Mind

Insurance might be one of the most boring words in the English language. Paperwork, policies, fine print. My son works in insurance and even though he has told me a million times what he does, I am not exactly sure I could explain it to you.

But I recently read something in Unreasonable Hospitality by Will Guidara (thanks for the rec Jenna) that reframed it for me. "You can be in the insurance business or be in the business of offering people the comfort of knowing they and their loved ones are covered, safe, and secure, no matter what happens."

That made me think about yoga.

We don’t practice yoga because life is predictable. We practice because it isn’t. Bodies change, plans shift, tragedies, heartbreak, and sometimes the world gets a little confusing. Yoga gives us steadiness so when something unexpected happens we are better able to handle it. It helps us build the resilience and clarity to respond rather than react when life takes an unexpected turn.

In that way, insurance feels a little yogic to me. It is not about expecting something bad to happen. It is about caring enough to be prepared.

For years I approached travel the way many of us do. Book the flight, pack the yoga pants, assume everything will work out. And most of the time it does.

But lately travel has become a little more… unpredictable.

Flights get delayed. Weather has opinions. People get sick. Airspace closes in places you didn’t even know had airspace. And sometimes your suitcase decides it needs its own spiritual journey elsewhere. None of this means we stop traveling. If anything, it makes the adventure part a little more real.

Travel insurance? I get asked this a lot! If a flight changes, if you get sick, or if something unexpected happens, you know you have a safety net. It also takes the blame off everyone and everything else. When something goes wrong it’s easy to start asking whose fault it is, what should have happened differently, or why this is happening to you. But spending time in blame rarely fixes anything and mostly just drains your energy. Having insurance lets you skip that whole spiral. You simply deal with what’s in front of you and move forward. Then instead of stressing about all the what ifs, you can focus on the important things. Like the yoga, the views, the food, and figuring out how much one person can reasonably pack. 

Travel insurance may not be glamorous, but it does something important. It lets you relax into the journey. A little boring until the moment you actually need it.

Have you ever bought travel insurance and then had to use it when something went sideways? If so, who did you use, and did they come through for you?

I’m doing a little research for future trips and would love to hear your real-life experiences. The good, the bad, or the frustrating. Reply and let me know. ✈️