The "No Problem" People

Our "no problema!" taxi

One thing I adore about being in Mexico, is the "no problem" attitude that seems to dance all over the place, there. Things break, plans change, life happens, and well, it works out. What needs to be done gets done, without a whole lot of complaining or bad mood. Life shifts and we shift with it.

A couple of years ago, we had to get to the other side of the village to get to our house. No cabs were around, so a friend of ours called her brother, assuring us that with his "camionetta," he could take Carol, me, and our suitcases. Great. How perfect! We sat down, waited - and had a good chuckle when a little 4-wheel motorcycle pulled up. We made jokes about it being our ride. It was yellow, after all.

Ha ha.

Well, it sure was yellow, and it WAS our ride.

When we questioned (just a little) how we were going to all fit on there, the answer was "no problema!" When we questioned (just a little)  where the suitcases were going to go, the answer, with a big smile, was "the trunk" - which turned out to be a bungee cord tied to the front.  My goodness, we laughed so hard! And we got on, and the luggage got on too, and off we went, the three of us laughing and the suitcases dangling. We made it just fine.

This morning, my friend and I walked into our adoptive bakery to get things ready for The Happy Café. This was only our second time there, and the last time, the light was on when we came in. This time, it was not, and for the life of us, we could not find a switch. It was 5 am, pitch dark, we had 100 pastries to bake in less than 3 hours - and no light. Not for one second did I sense any tension in the room. My friend immediately had a "no problem" attitude,  and within minutes, we were peeling apples and sheeting dough with the oven light casting a warm glow, and an iPhone flashlight for good measure. It was great, it was fun, and it was easy.

I love "no problem" people. With them, life becomes an adventure, a play. Things show up, and we shift a little to the left, a little to the right, still going where we want to go. There is no fear, there is no angst. We know we are going to get there - we just have not yet found how exactly how.

It's a great skill to have, and the great news is that it can be quite contagious.