Every year in Chiang Mai, local farmers typically set fire to the mountains in spring as a tradition, burning overgrown weeds to maintain soil nutrition and support the growth of essential crops later on.

Likewise, the illness automatically cleared the "weeds" in my mind, placing my attention to survival first and then addressing the few desires my spirit still craves. In this scenario, what you're willing to put your limited energy into is what you should genuinely focus on.

By this point in life, I've got a pretty extensive history with pain, and I'm sure many of you do too. Pain is just one of those things that's bound to happen – it can hit us anytime, anywhere, be it from external factors or bubbling up from within. Today, let's focus on the topic of pain.

This was an incidental reflection I had with myself the other day while strolling through the streets of Chiang Mai, Thailand. It struck me that it had been exactly 10 years since my first visit to the city. As I began to envision myself and the town a decade ago, my initial amusement turned into real surprise.

We all have something inside that has been lurking for a while - something we want to do but never did. We consider it a dream, a risk, an adventure - maybe something too good, or too big to be real.

Over time, we keep pushing it away because it is the natural thing to do. Before you realize it, the timing is gone. You start asking yourself 'what if,' and regrets come. The thoughts at this moment can be overwhelming and sometimes even consuming.

The only constant in life is change, and it often catches us off guard with unexpected twists. When things are out of control, the pressure to manage it all can be overwhelming. In these moments, it's easy to forget that we have a choice – the choice to let go.

Ask yourself: If I could only accomplish three things today, what would they be?