What does it look like to start all over again, finding your authentic self in unexpected places to find healing and empowerment along the way? Author Riza Rasco’s new self-published memoir ‘The World Is My Mirror’ is a story of radical reinvention, a love letter to travel, and a reflection on the courage it takes to begin again on the journey toward a truer self.
From Bolivia’s salt flats to the bomb-scarred souks of Aleppo, from remote African villages to mountain loops in northern Thailand, each place reflected an unspoken truth, offering lessons in resilience, humility, and belonging.
“It wasn’t distance that healed or transformed me; it was the act of stepping into the unknown, again and again,” she says in the book.
Along the way, she founded a social enterprise in West Africa and the Philippine Global Explorers, now the world’s largest national travel club, dedicated to education, heritage preservation, and giving back.
“I didn’t know what would come next. I hadn’t mapped out the future. But I had taken the one step that had felt impossible for years. I had let go of the story I had told myself, that my worth depended on productivity and performance. That the world would only value me if I remained useful in the way others expected.”
If Riza’s words and story are stirring something in you today, be sure to grab a copy of her book, and read an exclusive excerpt from Chapter 18 below.
[Excerpt from Chapter 18 “Finding My Stride in Africa”, p86-87]
Running brought me face to face with Africa’s wildness. In Victoria Falls, I ran near warthogs and baboons. “Elephants ahead!” a man warned me once. I turned back immediately, memories still fresh of friends being chased by elephants—surprisingly fast for their size—in Botswana. In Namibia, I ran past honey badgers, fearless little creatures with reputations to match. In Zimbabwe, a black mamba slid across my path. In Botswana, I ran through a crocodile farm, an experience I will never forget and never repeat.
But the wildest part of it all was the stillness it gave me inside.
I had found a form of therapy I hadn’t known existed. Not the clinical kind. Not even the quiet of meditation. This was a moving meditation—sweat, breath, earth, sky. In those runs, I found freedom. My mind cleared. My body softened. My spirit woke. Each run recalibrated me. The anxiety that had once ruled my days loosened its grip. I began to sleep better.
There was science to it: endorphins, dopamine, serotonin. But there was soul to it, too. It wasn’t just about the physical exertion. It was about the permission to be fully in my body again, after years of being trapped in my head. It was the simplicity of movement, the sacredness of breath, the privilege of being able to run freely, joyfully, without fear.
Every run became a story. Every path a practice. Every stride a remembering.
By the time the African expedition ended, I had covered hundreds of kilometers on foot, through city streets and desert roads, mountain passes and jungle paths. But it was the internal space I had gained that mattered most.
Africa had taught me to run toward discomfort. Toward truth. Toward presence. Toward joy.
And so, I made a promise to myself:
Wherever I go next, I will keep running, remain awake to the wonder of the world, and stay connected to the part of me that feels most alive when I’m in motion.
Dr. Riza Rasco is a scientist-turned-global explorer, author, and internationally recognized leader in women’s leadership and social impact through travel. After a prolific career in the life sciences, she traveled to all 203 countries and found unexpected healing, reinvention, and purpose along the way. That journey became the foundation of her memoir, ‘The World Is My Mirror’, a contemplative story of healing and reinvention, tracing how one woman’s global odyssey helped her reconstruct a life grounded not in achievement, but in authenticity and impact.
She now leads nonprofit and business organizations that harness the power of travel to uplift communities, and she speaks and consults globally on purposeful travel, reinvention, and impact-driven leadership. You can see more of her work on her website, and follow Riza on Instagram, Facebook, and Threads.
