My senior year of high school gave me the opportunity of a lifetime. I got to visit Costa Rica with my school’s environmental club. About 20 students and three chaperones flew to San José first. We ended up visiting four major cities in our time there.
My favorite was Tortuguero. We saw so many animals, like birds, sloths, turtles, a seal, and monkeys. The greenery surrounding us at all times was unlike anything I have ever seen. One of the places we stayed felt like we were in the middle of a jungle. Costa Rica is one of the few countries that do not have a military force. They decided to abolish their military in order to protect democracy and spend more money on healthcare and education. These people are all about keeping peace. This trip was one of the most amazing trips I’ve ever been on. My biggest takeaway from this country was the kindness and “pura vida” culture they all implement in their everyday lives. I have never encountered people with such a positive outlook on life.
Pura vida is a phrase used in Costa Rica to mean many things. Hello, thank you, goodbye, no worries, or simply to translate the good vibes of the pura vida mindset. The mindset and lifestyle of their culture are centered around living in the present, not sweating the small stuff, and living a happy life. I think we should all take parts of this mindset and culture and implement them into our lives.
As a busy and stressed college student, I find it difficult to live in the present moment sometimes. I often catch my mind full of everything I need to get done for a given week. I am simply going through the motions, as I imagine a lot of us are. Pura vida culture would tell me to do the opposite. We all need to stress a little less about material things and focus more on finding happiness and freedom. It can feel like we live in a dark world sometimes, but we need to remember the good stuff. We could bring a lot of value into our lives if we were more relaxed and carefree. This is exactly the culture of people living in Costa Rica.
I wanted to shine a light on this specific part of Hispanic culture because I find myself thinking about this mindset often. We are constantly in a state of go-go-go. When I learned about the culture of Costa Rica, I immediately felt happier. It was contagious. I hope the next time you feel stressed or overwhelmed, you can take a piece of this culture’s mindset and live in the present.