In a sleepy little town on the Northern Californian coast, I paid 6.75 for a tea latte before I found out they don’t have Wifi.The other cafe doesn’t open until 11. For a moment, I felt annoyed followed by an immediate sense of delight that there are still some places in the world that value peace and spaciousness above productivity. Earlier, I questioned whether or not I was being indulgent by taking a slow morning. I didn’t get into my car until 9:35. However, I did some vocal drills and a couple of French lessons. No, it wasn’t indulgent- I was dropping into the local vibe. It felt unfamiliar to be relaxed and take my time.
I drove through the foggy mist along the Coast with the intention of “taking care of business in town”. Since I’m in “Vacation mode” I struck up a conversation with a woman who passed by me and made a comment about the weather. It may seem unusual to hope for drizzle and fog when you’re on holiday but when you live in a severe fire danger zone and you’ve had 5 consecutive days of triple-digit weather ( high of 107) moisture and obstructed sun is a delight.
Joanne, the friendly passerby, is from Chico where the Park fire has burned more than 400,000 acres thus far. We talked about modern California life- fire, climate change, home insurance hikes ( or simply dropping coverage). I told her about my attempts to move away to Maine and then San Diego. I moved back to my beloved community in the Sierra foothills last October after concluding that there’s nowhere to run to. Everywhere has something- Floods, tornados, hurricanes, pollution, open carry laws that are copiously utilized, etc. In middle age, it’s very challenging to start over in a new community- even one that includes my loving family. With the state of the world, and the US in great unpredictability if not chaos I’ve surrendered to planting myself in a community of like-minded folks, doing what I love, feeling grateful for all the incredible fortune and privilege that I DO have, and doing what I can to make the world a better ( or at least habitable) place for future generations.
From my perspective, part of making the world a better place, for myself and others, is valuing serenity, flow, spaciousness, and connection. Taking a trip always gives me a strong taste of these things. When I go back to “my real life” is where the rubber hits the road.
Here are a few things that I do on a daily or weekly basis to keep those values alive:
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Intentional breathing – box breathing, longer exhales, etc.. There’s so much great stuff out there about how to pick yourself up when you’re down, settle when you’re amped, etc.
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Dance- often and passionately
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Write- journaling, sweet, heartfelt emails to a dear one, a list of monthly intentions ( NOT a to-do list- think more invocative, surrendered, and dreamy), a love poem to yourself, etc.
- Create your daily planner- follow the rhythms that are important to you, claim your own important Holy Days, and schedule in time for all the “to- be, to -dream, to- enjoy amidst the to-dos.
- Get out in nature and listen