Hi, I'm Cristina Marie
Welcome to Cristina Marie.co
About Me
My Younger Years
I was born with an imagination that was bigger than all of the stars and planets combined.
And thank goodness I did. It was that imagination that kept me dreaming and aspiring. It was this imagination that pushed my to do bigger and better with each day, month, year that passed by.
I started singing and acting on stages before I could even read. Having such a vivid imagination helped me fully embrace each character that I played. It was as if I actually was them during the time I played them. I took attributes from each character and applied it to my own personality. The brains and wit of Brigitta from the Sound of Music, the strength and courage of Dorothy from the Wizard of Oz.
Growing up, my family lived about an hour away from my school. A lot of time was spent in the car, where I would listen to hours of music.
Since all of my friends lived close to the school, my weekends were spent mostly at home, alone – in my room. But it was there where I would sing at the top of my lungs and pretend that I was on some of the biggest stages in the world.
I held onto that reality through childhood and into high school, singing and acting. I even got a scholarship to study vocal performance in college.
Except something crazy was happening inside.
The imaginary worlds and made up life occurrences weren’t fueling me as much anymore. My real life surroundings started not making sense to me, I didn’t feel like I was meant to be there. It was like I had played so many different characters throughout my life that I didn’t know who I really was.
One my best friends was living in New York City at the time and invited me up.
Upon getting off of the plane, and riding my first subway ride, my whole perception of life was rocked.
For the first time in my life, the real world around me was vivid, colorful and alive.
For the first time in my life, I was excited to explore and uncover what was around me. There were people of all ages, colors, heights, weights, occupations. So many different life stories, all traveling the same streets.
It felt alive – music, cars, chatter, singing, parks, lights.
New York City gave us 21 year olds a freedom that I hadn’t felt before. The freedom to roam freely and then to catch a subway whenever and wherever.
It was the first time in my life where I truly felt free.
I wanted to feel this feeling again.
I didn’t necessarily have a plan, nor did I feel like I needed one. I just needed to go out into the world and explore high and low until I felt it – my heart would know.
I had felt what it felt like to feel ALIVE and I refused to stay tied to a place or a life where my wings felt clipped.
Thankfully, I met a man who felt the same exact way. So, hand in hand, we ran towards that dream, searching the world for that feeling of feeling alive.
Chasing The Feeling Of Feeling ALIVE
Our focus became honing in on those things that brought us joy and choosing places based on that. We would take notes of what we liked, of what stuck out to us.
We arrived at each place with the intention of learning and growing. We wanted to absorb as much of the culture and place we were in as possible.
Although today it’s easy to say that we find the most joy exploring in the outdoors, we didn’t always know this.
We had traveled quite bit together at this point, mostly traveling between major cities. We had experienced Oktoberfest in Munich and St. Patrick’s Day in Dublin. We picnicked under the Eiffel Tower, drove the Ring Road in Iceland, and even saw the Queen herself in London.
As we continued visiting major cities, we started realizing that it wasn’t filling our cup as much. Each city started feeling the same. A desire to get deeper into each place began growing inside us.
It was in California where we were presented a glimpse of what “getting deeper” into a place looked like.
We were in the Redwoods National Forest, walking along the paved path, when a group passed by us. Each person in the group was oozing light and happiness from every pore. They each were suited up with large backpacks and were all wearing hiking shoes. They were hiking past the park to reach their sleeping spot for the night – somewhere deep in the forest.
As we stood there in jeans and chucks, we knew what our next challenge was. We were going to make our next trip “outdoorsy”.
Neither of us had grown up “outdoorsy”.
We both grew up in the city – cities that were not near the great outdoors. We had very limited knowledge on what being “outdoorsy” meant.
But, the joy of the group was so infectious that we knew we had to buy some gear and just rip the bandaid. We were committed to learning as we went.
I bought a proper jacket and assembled as much “outdoorsy” clothing that I had. We then both went to REI and bought some hiking boots.
We packed our bags from our high rise in the big city and headed to Colorado for 10 days.
When I say this trip changed our lives, it really changed our lives – more than we expected.
That feeling of freedom, of feeling alive that I felt in New York, was amplified in Colorado – by a million percent.
The colors seemed more vivid, the food seemed richer, the people seemed brighter.
After that trip, we knew we were on to something. We were now on a mission to find all of those places that made us feel that way around the world, and eventually move to one.
For the next 3 years, we prioritized getting deeper into the outdoors, in different parts of the world.
We followed Colorado with California (in a more “outdoorsy” way this time) and then Arizona. We then stayed in Western Europe, where we spent months on end exploring. From Italy to the Nordics and everything in between. We went winter skiing in the Alps, and spent long summers in the Rivieras. We spent a month and a half in New Zealand and then lived out of Colorado for some months.
The beautiful people we met, the foods that we ate, the languages we began learning. The cultures we immersed ourselves in, the concerts and symphonies that we attended. All of the museums that we spent hours roaming in, the traditions and the customs.
During this time of travel, we made our first big move to a small mountain town. This town was just a few hours from family. With our extensive travel, though, we calculated having been abroad more than in our home. So, we decided to pack everything up, put all of our belongings in storage, and live on the road full time.
Instead of paying rent, we would stay in different accommodations for months at a time. In between our travels, we spent time with family.
Each location expanded our minds and changed our perspectives in monumental ways.
This exciting stint ended on our last 3 month stay in Europe.
8 Months of Darkness
We were hit with both an unjust, sudden lay off (corporate America…) and then, while in Rome, our car was broken into. We lost thousands of dollars worth of valuables, and some simply irreplaceable.
The next several months were very hard.
We spent that time back in the place we were originally from – the place we found no alignment in. The more we learned about ourselves, the less we aligned with this place.
We occupied a lot of our time trying to keep busy. We focused on continuing to learn and keeping our brains sharp.
But, it was also a time where we learned so much about ourselves. Learning to put myself and my husband first, and setting boundaries with those around you. All valuable lessons that are necessary to learn in life – just not easy to go through.
Experiencing a low period in life brings out people’s true colors. Unfortunately, for us, that meant seeing sides of people around us that we never expected to see.
Although there were a few that helped bring us light during this time, the bad apples are the ones who ruin it for all.
Selfishness, greed, jealousy, drama, small- mindedness.
It was by far the lowest point in my life – it was very lonely and disappointing in many ways. Each day, I had to smile and try to find silver linings, but as the time went on, it proved to be harder and harder.
We continued to hold each other – a little tighter each day.
We held onto the thought of how much stronger this was going to make us, how exciting our future was going to be.
We never stopped dreaming, no matter how many times we were told that we had to “start living real life”. We knew that this was our “real life”, and that was all that mattered.
Finally, after 8 months of darkness, a light became visible once again.
The day my husband accepted the offer for his new role, a huge weight felt like it lifted off of our shoulders. It felt like I could fully breathe again for the first time in forever. I felt my wings starting to stretch again.
I will never forget the long hug we shared the day everything was finalized.
We made it to the end. We were stronger than ever, more grounded, more connected as husband and wife than ever before.
Once again, we held each other’s hands and began running towards our dream. With all of the lessons learned and held dearly from this time, we were ready to begin our next chapter in life.
We packed our belongings, loaded up the boxes in a POD and moved to the Mountain West, where we currently live.
Why I Started This Blog
From childhood into adulthood, I have kept a journal.
In these journals, I have detailed lessons, observations, emotions, places, goals, dreams, ideas. I have written down favorite restaurants, tips from travel, sayings and quotes. I have long lists of favorite books and have picked up on recipes and techniques in the kitchen.
I have also used journaling as a way to sort out my thoughts, to create a listener for myself in my most lonely times. There are so many lessons that I learned during those 8 months that I wish I could have learned sooner. During that time, I promised myself that I would put these lessons into writing so that whoever needs to read it, can hopefully find it sooner than I did.
My passion for storytelling has always driven me to document my journey. From the vivid tales of my imagination to the real-life adventures I embarked on, storytelling has been a constant companion.
Beyond my love for storytelling, wellness and longevity have become constant themes in my life. I am deeply passionate about nurturing both the mind and body, seeking experiences that promote overall well-being. This includes the foods we put in our bodies, ways to
I created this blog as a place where I can create conversation around all the different facets of being human. Share the lessons I’ve learned from both the highs and the lows with those that need to hear it. Share my observations and perspectives and hear others’. Share recipes I’ve learned, books that I love, and stories to entertain.
I am fascinated by this beautiful world we all live in. I wish to share this fascination with anyone who will listen.
So, thank you for being here – thank you for reading – and I am excited to see what this new adventure will bring 🙂
Until next time,
Cristina Marie