Travel and Your Element: Where Does Your Energy Want to Go?

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I’m often asked:
Should your dominant element be considered when planning a trip?

The answer is a resounding yes.

There’s a compelling and ancient connection between travel and the Five Elements—Water, Wood, Fire, Earth, and Metal—rooted in Chinese philosophy, medicine, martial arts, and, of course, Feng Shui.

Each element holds its own personality, rhythm, and energetic blueprint. They’re connected to directions, seasons, climates, colors, and shapes. But more importantly, they influence our physical, emotional, and spiritual balance—including how and where we feel most alive in the world.

So… what travel adventure is right for you?

Best travel vibe: Adventure travel, hiking, trail runs, competitive sports, exploring somewhere new. You’d rather be running on the beach than lying on it.

If Your Element Is Water

You’re introspective, imaginative, and deeply resourceful. You prefer to reflect before you act—and your strength lies in your steady, intuitive nature.

Best travel vibe: Solitude, oceanside walks, journaling near waves, meditative retreats.
You thrive in places where you can hear your own thoughts.

Action compels you. You’re bold, driven, and fiercely independent. You perform under pressure and are always reaching for the next peak—literally and metaphorically.

Best travel vibe: Adventure travel, hiking, trail runs, competitive sports, exploring somewhere new.
You’d rather be running on the beach than lying on it.

If Your Element Is Fire

You’re the spark—the passionate, creative force that brings warmth and laughter everywhere you go. You love excitement, people, and making memories.

Best travel vibe: Group trips, festivals, vibrant cities, or anywhere with music and movement.
You’re the one organizing a game of volleyball at sunset.

If Your Element Is Earth


Best travel vibe: Family trips, spa getaways, cooking retreats, or building sandcastles with loved ones. You restore others by simply being yourself.

You’re grounded, nurturing, and a natural peacemaker. You seek connection, comfort, and meaningful moments over thrills.


Best travel vibe: Family trips, spa getaways, cooking retreats, or building sandcastles with loved ones. You restore others by simply being yourself.

If Your Element Is Metal

You are elegant, disciplined, and drawn to refinement. You love beauty, structure, and value ritual and sacred tradition.

Best travel vibe: Boutique hotels, cultural tours, art-focused cities, or tranquil spiritual spaces.
You travel in luxury—not for show, but for meaning.

Remember:

We carry all the elements within us—but one often leads. Knowing your dominant element can help you align your travels with your energetic needs, leading to a more meaningful, restorative, and joy-filled experience.

Wherever you go, may your journey match your spirit.
Travel well. Travel aligned.

Are you wearing the best colors for you? Each of us has a power color based on the five elements and the day we were born. Sign up for my email list and provide me with the day, month, and year of your birth, and I will send you your birth element and power color!
Want more tips on creating a meaningful life? Subscribe to my podcast, Creating a Meaningful Life, and follow for more inspiration!

9 Feng Shui Dorm Room Tips for Focus, Calm & Creativity

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Feng Shui Your Dorm Room for Focus, Calm & Creativity

Can you believe it? Summer is pretty much over… and that means—back to school!

If you’re a college student living on campus, I’ve got a few Feng Shui tips to help turn your dorm room into a space of focus, calm, and creativity. Let’s dive in.

Tip #1: Bed Position Make sure your bed is against a solid wall with a headboard—this creates support and stability. Trust me, your nervous system will thank you.

Tip #1: Bed Position
Make sure your bed is against a solid wall with a headboard—this creates support and stability. Trust me, your nervous system will thank you.

Tip #2: The Door
Nothing should block your door from opening all the way. This is where energy—and opportunity—enters. Keep it clear.

Tip #4: Plants Yes, real plants! They bring life, vitality, and fresh air into your space.

Tip #3: EMFs
Keep electronics at arm’s length from your head while sleeping. It’s better for your rest and your health.
Tip #4: Plants
Yes, real plants! They bring life, vitality, and fresh air into your space.

Tip #5: Wall Art
Hang what inspires you—nothing dark or heavy. Your walls should reflect your dreams.

Tip #6: Clutter
Get rid of what you don’t need. More space = more clarity, more focus.

Tip #7: Trash
Take it out daily. Clearing the garbage clears stagnant energy.

Tip #9: Hanging Crystal Place a crystal in front of a window to bounce rainbow light through the room. Instant creative spark.

Tip #8: Bathroom Door
If your room has a bathroom—close the door when you sleep. It drains energy if left open.

Tip #9: Hanging Crystal
Place a crystal in front of a window to bounce rainbow light through the room. Instant creative spark.

Sure, roommates and tiny spaces can make things tricky—but don’t stress what you can’t control. Even small changes can shift the energy in big ways.

Here’s to a meaningful, focused, and amazing school year—go get it!

Are you wearing the best colors for you? Each of us has a power color based on the five elements and the day we were born. Sign up for my email list and provide me with the day, month, and year of your birth, and I will send you your birth element and power color!
Want more tips on creating a meaningful life? Subscribe to my YouTube Channel, Creating a Meaningful Life, and follow for more inspiration!

Why Sacred Travel Changes Us from the Inside Out

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Why We Travel: The Journey That Brings You Home

We Travel Because Something Within Us Is Searching

People often ask me why I travel so much.

The assumption is usually that I love adventure, history, beautiful landscapes, or ancient cultures. And while all of those things are true, they are not the real reason.

I don’t think we travel simply to see the world.

I think we travel because something inside us is searching.

Searching for meaning.

Searching for perspective.

Searching for wonder.

Searching for a deeper understanding of who we are.

I remember climbing to the Cave of Mary Magdalene in Southern France. Over the years, I have climbed to the Cave of Mary Magdalene in Southern France, wandered through Chaco Canyon beneath a sky full of stars, and stood in the Jordan River in Israel.

Each journey was different.

Each place carried its own energy, history, and lessons.

But the longer I travel, the more I realize something surprising:

The destination is rarely the point.

What changes us is who we become while we are there.

When the Familiar Falls Away

The emails stop.

The routines disappear.

The roles we play every day begin to loosen their grip.

And suddenly, we are left with ourselves.

No distractions.

No autopilot.

No certainty.

Just presence.

That is when the real journey begins.

The goal is not simply to reach the destination.Pilgrimage Is About Transformation, Not Tourism

Ancient cultures understood this. Pilgrimage was never about tourism. It was about transformation. People left home not merely to visit a sacred site, but to encounter themselves differently.

The journey outward mirrored a journey inward.

And when they returned home, they carried something back with them.

A new perspective.

A deeper understanding.

A greater sense of purpose.

Perhaps that is why certain places stay with us long after we leave them.

It is not because they were beautiful.

It is because they changed the questions we ask ourselves.

What Chaco Canyon, Mary Magdalene’s Cave, and the Jordan River Taught Me

I remember standing in Chaco Canyon and feeling the vastness of time. The people who built this extraordinary place lived nearly a thousand years ago, yet their presence could still be felt in the stones, the silence, and the sky.

I remember standing in Chaco Canyon and feeling the vastness of time.

I remember climbing to the Cave of Mary Magdalene in Southern France. The ascent itself felt like a pilgrimage. By the time I reached the cave, something had quieted within me. There was no dramatic revelation—just a profound stillness and the realization that sacred places often speak through silence rather than words.

And I remember stepping into the Jordan River in Israel. Standing in those ancient waters, I felt connected to countless generations who had come before me seeking healing, renewal, and transformation. It reminded me that some places carry not only history, but hope.

None of these experiences gave me answers.

But each of them deepened my awareness.

And awareness is often more valuable than certainty.

Travel has a way of reminding us how small we are—and how connected we are.Travel has a way of reminding us how small we are—and how connected we are.

It humbles us.

It awakens our curiosity.

It teaches us that there are countless ways to live, countless ways to believe, and countless ways to find meaning.

Most importantly, it reminds us that life is bigger than the stories we tell ourselves.

The irony is that many of us travel looking for something “out there.”

A sacred site.

A breathtaking view.

A transformative experience.

Yet what we often discover is something that was waiting within us all along.

The courage to begin again.

The willingness to let go.

The capacity to be present.

The ability to see our lives through new eyes.

Perhaps that is why we travel.

Not to escape our lives.

Returning Home More Fully Awake

The great poet T.S. Eliot wrote:

“We shall not cease from exploration,
And the end of all our exploring
Will be to arrive where we started
And know the place for the first time.”

I have always loved those words because they capture the true purpose of sacred travel.

The goal is not simply to reach the destination.

The goal is to return home changed.

To see the same life, the same relationships, the same challenges, and the same blessings—but with greater awareness, gratitude, and wonder.

Because in the end, the most important journey is not measured in miles.

It is measured in transformation.

And perhaps that is why we travel.

Where Has Your Journey Changed You?

Every meaningful journey leaves us carrying something home that didn’t fit in our suitcase.

What place transformed the way you see yourself—or the world?

Share your story in the comments below. Your experience may become the inspiration someone else needs to begin their own journey.

If you’re drawn to sacred travel, subscribe to Creating a Meaningful Life for weekly reflections, videos, and stories exploring how travel can become a path of transformation rather than simply transportation.

Are you wearing the best colors for you? Each of us has a power color based on the five elements and the day we were born. Sign up for my email list and provide me with the day, month, and year of your birth, and I will send you your birth element and power color!
Want more tips on creating a meaningful life? Subscribe to my YouTube Channel, Creating a Meaningful Life, and follow for more inspiration!

How to Know If a Place Is Calling You

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Thoughtful Female person stand look over dramatic valley on hazy morning sunrise with fairy chimneys background. Solo exploration in Turkey

The Quiet Invitations That Change Everything

Have you ever felt drawn to a place you’ve never been?

Sometimes certain landscapes seem to pull us—mountains, deserts, ancient cities, sacred paths. It can feel mysterious, even irrational. Yet many travelers describe the same experience: a quiet sense that a place is calling them. It might begin with curiosity. A photograph that lingers in your mind. A story that stays with you long after you hear it. A subtle feeling that says, I need to go there.

Learning to Listen Before You Travel

Sacred travel often begins this way—not with planning, but with listening.

Last year I was in Santa Fe during Indian Market and became overwhelmed by the sea of turquoise everywhere.Last year I was in Santa Fe during Indian Market and became overwhelmed by the sea of turquoise everywhere. The color was everywhere—necklaces, rings, earrings, bracelets—an ocean of blue-green stone that felt both beautiful and ancient.

I ducked into La Fonda to escape the crowds and wandered into one of my favorite shops that carries estate jewelry. A ring caught my eye. When I asked about it, the owner told me it was a seal nearly 2,000 years old from Turkey, inscribed in Arabic with the words, “God is good.”

I loved it and bought it.

When the Journey Chooses You

When I returned home, I opened an email from a friend describing a trip to Turkey and asking if I wanted to go.

For years I had felt drawn to Turkey—to Istanbul and Göbekli Tepe in particular. There was something about that part of the world that had always intrigued me.

Moments like that make you pause.

Sacred travel often unfolds this way—not through careful planning, but through a series of quiet invitations.

Where Is Your Soul Being Called?

The question is not always where you want to go. Sometimes the deeper question is where you are being invited.The question is not always where you want to go. Sometimes the deeper question is where you are being invited.

When you begin to notice those invitations—the lingering photograph, the unexpected object, the conversation that keeps returning—you start to realize that certain places have a way of finding us.

And when they do, the journey becomes something more than travel. It becomes a response.

Is there a place in the world that keeps calling to you?

I’d love to hear what landscapes are speaking to you.

Are you wearing the best colors for you? Each of us has a power color based on the five elements and the day we were born. Sign up for my email list and provide me with the day, month, and year of your birth, and I will send you your birth element and power color!
Want more tips on creating a meaningful life? Subscribe to my YouTube Channel, Creating a Meaningful Life, and follow for more inspiration!

Mercury Retrograde: A Cosmic Reset for Reflection and Renewal

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Mercury Retrograde: A Cosmic Reset

Mercury Retrograde. Just hearing those words is enough to make some people panic. Suddenly, the Wi-Fi cuts out, a flight is delayed, or that text you meant for one person ends up with someone else. But what is Mercury Retrograde really—and how can we work with it instead of against it?

A Quick History of Mercury

Mercury is the smallest planet and the closest to the sun, racing through its orbit in just 88 days. In Roman mythology, Mercury was the messenger of the gods, ruling over communication, travel, and commerce.

Several times a year, Mercury appears to move backward in the sky. It’s just an optical illusion, but to ancient astrologers it meant disruption in the very things Mercury governs—communication, travel, and technology. That’s why today, during Mercury Retrograde, we often see mix-ups, delays, and breakdowns in these areas.

When Mercury goes retrograde—about three to four times each year—expect some bumpsWhat to Expect

When Mercury goes retrograde—about three to four times each year—expect some bumps:

  • Misunderstandings in texts, emails, or conversations
  • Computer crashes or phone glitches
  • Travel delays and last-minute changes
  • General confusion, like the universe’s wires are crossed

It’s easy to feel frustrated, but Mercury Retrograde doesn’t have to spell disaster.

How to Prepare

A little awareness goes a long way. Here are some simple ways to keep your chi steady:

  1. Back up your computer and phone.
  2. Double-check travel arrangements.
  3. Take a moment to slow down and reread texts or emails before sending.
  4. If possible, avoid signing major contracts until Mercury moves forward again.

The Gift of RetrogradeThe Gift of Retrograde

Here’s the part people often miss: Mercury Retrograde is also a gift. It’s an invitation to pause. To reflect, renew, and reset before leaping into the next season.

This is the perfect time to:

  • Revisit unfinished projects
  • Reconnect with old friends
  • Rewrite or refine your goals
  • Rest and recharge

Instead of resisting, lean in. Mercury Retrograde is less about chaos and more about clarity.

The next time Mercury Retrograde rolls around, don’t panic—prepare. Back up your data, breathe through the delays, and use the time to reflect and realign. Because sometimes, moving forward begins with a backward step.

 

 

Are you wearing the best colors for you? Each of us has a power color based on the five elements and the day we were born. Sign up for my email list and provide me with the day, month, and year of your birth, and I will send you your birth element and power color!
Want more tips on creating a meaningful life? Subscribe to my podcast, Creating a Meaningful Life, and follow for more inspiration!

 

Michelle Cromer