During my career, both as a fitness professional, and as a yogi and ayurvedic health counselor, my message has always been the same….the health and wellness of our body.
just hanging around on the fence
Now I’m not saying that’s not important, it certainly is, and many times its our gateway into deeper understanding, into our mind and thoughts, our emotions and feelings. These 2 factors drive our behavior, which is something I’m currently interested in.
Why do we do the things we do, over and over again, wondering why we don’t have the life we want? Why do we go to workshops and classes, learn new things, and then not incorporate them? Why do we stay stuck in our repetitive cycles year after year?
I know someone who always used to say “there just is not enough time in the day to do all the things I want to do”. This was true for her while she was a young working woman, but now she’s retired, she continues to say the same thing. It’s not that there isn’t enough time in the day, but that she BELIEVES there is never enough time to do the things she wants to do.
With access to so much information we can always find the next to do list for whatever we desire. Want more focus and attention - do more meditation. Want to feel less pain in your body - do more yoga. Want to lose weight - eat more fruits and vegetables.
Now I’m not saying these things aren’t important, as they certainly are. But the list is too simple, and lets be honest, we don’t follow them anyway. We continue on the never ending quest to find the best answer to our problems, like finding the best purse or pair of shoes…and never really finding them!
Recently I was part of a masterclass where the host talked about a magical life. What the heck is that I wondered. Well her simple answer is….we can all have one if we stay conscious, become aware of not only our desires, but what holds us back, and trust the process. And sometimes it doesn’t feel like magic, but it is all the same. And you just don’t know where these magical moments can take you.
Here’s my story about magical moments…..
8 years ago, in 2015, I ended my 40 year marriage. Yep you read that right, 40 years! It was coming for a long time, and it was a good thing. Of course it was really challenging and hard, and there was no way I would say it was magical. But then….my daughter, who had just had a baby, needed my help. She asked me to come to Santa Fe, maybe to stay for a while or maybe forever.
As I packed up my house and closed my business, I realized this could be a magical moment. I had no idea what was in front me but I went on an adventure driving across the country to Santa Fe. I wasn’t really sure what any of this new adventure would look like once I arrived, but I kept feeling this loving hand on my back, moving me forward, step by step. And, my ego (which is always trying to understand and make sense of what is happening) kept reminding me, I could always go home.
I was uncertain as to whether I would stay, but I was happy to be with my daughter and her family, and build a relationship with my granddaughter and grandson.
Then the most amazing experienced happened, something I could have not ever imagined! You see I fly often, back and forth from Annapolis to Florida (as my sister lives there) and to Santa Fe (as my kids live there). My habit is to read and be quiet while on the plane, not allowing myself to get pulled into conversation with people around me.
Well this one travel experience, I met a man on an airplane as I was coming back to Santa Fe from Annapolis. He sat in the middle seat right next to me, this big tall man, and I thought, oh brother, there are lots of seats around and you pick this one! Neither one of us were talking to or interested in each other. Then this magical thing happened. A woman sitting on the window side got up to use the bathroom. Little did we know she had a dog in a carrier under the seat. Well that little dog got out and began wondering around our feet looking for her human. So I did what any dog loving person would do. I threw the book I was reading on this mans lap, and reached down, picked up the dog, comforting it until her mama came back.
After everyone settled back down, I looked at this man for the first time since he sat down. And we began talking, and talking, and talking. And instead of asking me for my phone number, he gave me his email and said if I ever wanted to keep talking, let him know.
Really? I was kind of stunned, but in a good way! I had no intention of contacting him, but again that little voice, that knowing, kept showing up saying, why not? Are you going to live in fear your whole life or are you going to stay open and experience life (ie: notice and go after the magical moments)?
So I contacted him and we started dating, cautiously at first, as remember, I had just ended a 40 year marriage, and my new mantra was I’m happy to be single living the life I want to live!
But there was something about this man that kept drawing me toward him….not what you would expect, but a slow, kind, emerging relationship where I felt safe, seen, and heard for the first time in many years.
Fast forward to 2022, and we got married! Yep after 3 years of dating, and 3 years of living together (through the pandemic no less) we said yes to loving each other forever in the sweetness of close family and friends in our New Mexico backyard.
Wedding day May 1, 2022
When I contemplate these events, I can’t even explain the MAGIC in them….and I couldn’t have known any of it. All of it occurred from a deep knowing, and that invisible loving hand to end my marriage and move to Santa Fe.
I owe it all to taking a chance, to my awareness, perspective, and trusting that little voice that we all hear, but many times don’t listen to!
Well it’s time to listen and pay attention, because there is MAGIC everywhere around you!
And that, my friends is what I’m interested in now. To share a message of YES we can create the life we want, it does take some effort and awareness, maybe be part of a like minded community, and a little quiet time to listen, but YES we can make magic and the life our dreams.
Was it easy…heck no. But there was clarity, even when it was hard. I had to learn to listen and trust my own voice, and not get pulled sideways by what I like to call the “next shiny object” (the new place to live, or the friend who seems to have all the answers, or the newest diet or healthy habit). You see wherever you go there you are! It’s me, myself, and I all of the time.
So why not create YOUR magical life? What do you need? How can I support you in this new adventure?