True crises bring change. They produce real transformations that make us reorient our lives, rethink our priorities, and even choose our environment more carefully. I feel like I had that crisis about 10 years ago, after my father's death and with the economic crisis in my country, Venezuela. Those experiences shook me to my core and made me search for better ways of living, lighter and less ostentatious, if I wanted to survive and not fall into a hole of hardship and sadness.

That life I acquired has helped me to be more focused on myself, distancing me from daily stress, blind consumerism, and even excessive productivity that never rests. I can genuinely say that I currently have everything I need and nothing I don't. Because I boast that the few things I have are so good that they are worth a thousand, as is the case with my loved ones, friends, and family, whom I give a fundamental place in that simple, good, and fulfilling life. With them, even the silences are comfortable.

In the past, I liked to lose myself in crowds, but today I enjoy small gatherings where you don't have to raise your voice to talk, where conversation is the goal and not a problem. I love simple, intimate, welcoming spaces, without visual or auditory distractions, that produce inner peace and clarity.

Another thing I have learned is to eat with purpose. I don't just eat to satisfy my hunger, but also to feel good. I don't need to eat large quantities of food, but rather seek out the foods that nourish my body the most. Just as I try to consume what is good for me in terms of food, I have also stopped consuming junk information, content that is alarmist, destabilizing, and has no value: harmful information.

If I talk about an ideal life, I have to talk about routines. For me, routines are not a problem: they are a way to organize myself, orient myself, calm myself. I like to find pleasure in the simple things I do every day, from feeling the cold floor of the house when I walk barefoot, drinking lemon water on an empty stomach, the taste of freshly brewed coffee, to showering three times a day or washing and cleaning the house on the weekend. I believe that in our daily habits we build the temple that we are.

In a special place are reading and writing, as a way to disconnect, express myself, and get lost. I like to disconnect from the cellphone or computer and start reading a physical book, writing by hand. Turning the page, smelling them, feeling how my hands make strokes on the paper allows me to exercise my mind, my senses, my imagination. I believe we should always have time to do the things we most enjoy: it is not wasting time, it is investing in our mental health.

And finally, not feeling attached to material things. If you have something and someone needs or wants it, donate it, give it to them. Practicing detachment elevates you and comforts you. Helping others is a beautiful way to present yourself to others and to yourself when you look in the mirror. Remember that we should not be materialistic and accumulate: having things for the sake of having them makes no sense. Buy only if we need something, if what we buy gives us satisfaction rather than regret.

In short, you don't need to go live on an island to have a fulfilling life; it's enough to seek tranquility, surround yourself with good people, do the things you love, and be thankful even for the rain, even if it gets you wet.