There is a small moment between decision and action. It is up to you to fill that moment with fear or COURAGE.

About a year ago Mumbai got attacked by terrorists. I just got back from Italy and was planning my trip to India. I had a round trip ticket to Mumbai and was enrolled in Yoga Vidya Dahm's yoga teacher training course for February 2009. Out of genuine concern many people discouraged me from going, and my parents seemed surprised that I was even considering following through on my plans. Out of fear I questioned whether or not I should go, and considered canceling the whole thing, getting a refund, and using the money to record an album in Los Angeles.

To try and make an educated decision, I asked around for different opinions.

The people who had been to India before said to go, that I'll be fine.

Most people who had not been to India thought I'd be crazy to take the risk.

There were two conversations in particular I clearly remember. One was with my Grandma while standing in line at the post office in Hilo. She told me that I should go. "The last you want is to regret not going, and to find out it was safe after all and then think oh shoot I should have gone to India. Plus if you are going to study yoga you should do it there. Oh and don't tell your dad I told you that. " The second one was with Hanif, the owner of a postal center in Torrance who helped me with my Indian visa. When he gave me the papers to fill out I asked him about his opinions on safety there. "There are dangers everywhere. You can't let that stop you. There are more dangers here driving on the freeway." The woman behind me in line chimed in and agreed with him.

It was a hard call to make. A terrorist attack is valid reason for concern, but not necessarily a reason to not go somewhere. Causing my family to worry about me if I went would make me feel guilty, but regret would lead to resentment. I trust my intuition to keep me safe and I take the path of least regret.

So I went and I am SO GLAD I DID.

And I was scared, mostly of the unknown and anxiety about entering a third world country, knowing this would be the farthest outside of my comfort zone I ever dared to venture....alone. But once I got there it was okay, I learned what I needed to know, and I eventually ended up staying twice as long as I planned, and had some of the best experiences of my life. I even recorded an album there, so also I did what I would have done if I stayed back but with much better songwriting material and beautiful new person to make music with. Sometimes you can have it all. Have your cake and a thousand more. I released that album we call Our Little India just last week. That music exists as the BEST souvenir of all my travels so far.

While in Mumbai I visited the places that got attacked. Though there was somberness still lurking in the air, it felt safe. A tour guide walked me through the gorgeous Taj Hotel (though partial burned) after going through three security checkpoints and commented on how my parents must be worrying about me. On the day we celebrated Holi, Rory and I had lunch at Leopolds (the cafe that got shot up) with new friends, all of us with colored paint on our faces and clothes...laughing and glad to be there.

In all this, the scariest thing of all - more than the terrorist attacks, more than than being on a airplane for 15 hours wondering what I was getting myself into - is sitting here thinking about how I almost didn't go.