A close friend and I joked for years that "you've got to have a plan." We agreed that life always seemed easier, ran more smoothly, and felt more predictable with a plan in place. Well, except for when the plan didn't go as intended - that caused frustration.

The energy and vibrations I'm sharing with the universe, whether this takes the form of connection to the headrest in my car (to which my hair clings diligently) or that spark created by a hello kiss. I am reminded that we are truly connected to one another and to everything.

In July, I reconnected with a woman possessing huge presence who struck me as one tough cookie. Generally speaking, individual people don't frighten me. This woman, though, instilled just enough fear in me that I knew she would push my growing edge. Experience has taught me that doing something I'm afraid of manifests growth, so I hired her as my personal coach.

Cat person alert! Yes, I confess, I am one of "those" people. I have often wished that people I care about would give birth to kittens instead of babies, because I find them so much more relatable. My grandson exempted himself from this rule, but only after he arrived on the scene - during the "cooking" phase - I still hoped for kittens.

I grew up as an only child, so I was both the most special and least special kid in the house. I believe this rarely holds true for multi-children families. In fact, Jeffrey Kluger, author of The Sibling Effect, supports my theory saying in a TED Talk earlier this year, “95% of parents have a favored child, and the other 5% are lying.”

In April I attended a personal growth weekend in Maryland. On Sunday morning, each of the facilitators spoke out in turn to kick off our final day. As each leader claimed a few moments, the participants sat with eyes closed, breathing deeply, allowing the words to wash over us. Some of it was "nice" and some I couldn't relate to at all. Then, one woman said, "Until today, I have sucked at receiving."

A few years back, a dear friend (and over six million others) fell in love with the book, Eat, Pray, Love. While I recognized a delightful moment of synchronicity in the first chapters, the prose didn't speak to me. Then I stumbled upon a TED Talk featuring the memoir's author, Elizabeth Gilbert.

While I lounged by the pool, I spied the bride in all her finery, wearing a wide smile as she made her way to the beach, trailed by two photographers for a pre-ceremony shoot. Later, from the hotel room, I caught the exchange of rings while the couple was surrounded by a small group of loved ones. And the next morning, as the bride walked through the lobby, she looked absolutely miserable.

Death drew a loose circle around me this past year. In addition to the death of my father - parents, spouses, children and friends of people I care about have died. Some lived a full life in a short time, and others spent years on earth, and never truly lived. These deaths and my own childhood experiences inspired me to consider the impact of absence.

This final installment of the Costa Rica series begins with a confession. While on retreat last January, I fell in love with Brad Pitt. Yes, I know, a shocking discovery - perhaps more so when you learn that Brad Pitt actually fell asleep in my arms during this trip. Pretty scandalous!

As we wind down the Costa Rica stories, I need to share about the monkeys. In advance of arriving at our rental house in the jungle, we were told to bring ear plugs, assured that this would be the only way to get a good night's sleep. We brought them, and never used them once, because waking to the sound of howler monkeys is not a treat to be missed!

While in Costa Rica a couple of months ago, I fell in love with the creatures of the jungle. Among them was the three-toed sloth.

My husband and I recently returned from our first trip to Costa Rica. As we prepared for our holiday, we heard warnings again and again.

Last month my step-daughter moved back home from D.C. mid-year through her freshman experience at George Washington University. Her mom and dad struggled tremendously with this decision. From my perspective she'd finally dropped in and operated from more clarity than I've witnessed since she started touring colleges two years ago.

These last weeks, life knocked again and again on the door of my heart that is touched by courageous acts. To begin the New Year, I wanted to share a few of these stories with you, perhaps they will inspire your courage, as they have inspired mine.

My friend, Ed, just attended his mom's 90th birthday party. In her sunset years, Lil (his mom) has made it very clear that when she dies she doesn't want one of those obituaries that says, "She played bridge and enjoyed crossword puzzles." Ed jokes, "If we follow her guidelines we're pretty much down to: She was born, lived, and died."

One of my favorite musical artists, Jason Mraz, recently posted the video, "Bathing in Sound." A camera follows Mraz, as part of his "In Search of Incredible" project, to the Mojave Desert where he visits the Integratron. For those, like me, who didn't know, the Integretron is "...an acoustically perfect tabernacle and energy machine sited on a powerful geomagnetic vortex..."

Jamie Thurber recently shared a bumper sticker quote, "Don't believe everything you think." I love that! From my teens to late twenties I claimed I would "never get married, never have kids!" And then I married a man with two children. Life proves that bumper sticker's truth again and again.

My husband reads part of a "good for you" book everyday at breakfast. For two weeks, the book on the porch table was "The Aladdin Factor" by Jack Canfield and Mark Victor Hansen. I stared at it for those fourteen days, before I finally picked it up. Then, I couldn't put it down.

We hold such myths about power: "knowledge is power," a man on Wall Street wears a "power suit," our world is powered by electricity, which can be lethal; and yet, what touches you most deeply? What memories do you hold most dear?