It's no secret that travel is high on my priority list: one of my major business tenants centered around retreats, and sharing the magic of adventures in new places. At the top of every list or 5-year plan is a combination of business and travel.
As I write these words, I am supposed to be in Costa Rica at our farewell taco dinner after a lovely boat ride excursion to a pink sand island. And not so much...
Whenever I travel, I usually make Fort Lauderdale my controlled layover and sneak in a visit with my brother. With the closing of Yoga One, heavily restricted Costa Rican borders, and the future of in-person classes in major jeopardy, I decided to take what I've named my "Charlotte Sabbatical". I packed up my Honda Civic with 2-months worth of books, kitchen spices, clothes, and of course my dog, and convinced my best friend to take the carefully calculated drive down to south Florida!
Sounds like a dream, right?
A brief summary of the first 6 days: shredded car tire, stranded on I-95, forced layover in St. Augustine, fire ant bite allergies, car break-ins, brother's car stolen from the driveway, more torrential rain than sunny skies....
I was feeling discouraged, to say the least.
On the second straight day of storms, I picked an easy reread from my suitcase of books You're a Badass by Jen Sincero. When I first read this book a few years ago, it was a synchronistically timed with a training on Bhakti, or the Yoga of devotion. Both inspired/empowered me to be less the victim to circumstance, and more the creatrix of my own magic.
Jen spends one of the early chapters explaining why she calls our Ego's the "Big Snooze" or B.S. for short. She uses this framework to express the ways in which we self-sabotage ourselves, and stay asleep to our most magical lives, that pesky Ego getting in the way with its patterns of protection. Jen boldly states, "You're basically murdering the Big Snooze, and she is going to come at you, rolling pin raised high over her head, to beat you back into your old life." She then shares a few stories of people making BIG moves and encountering major roadblocks, including fires, getting hit by busses, and trucks plowing through newly built businesses.
Ok, I'm listening...
"Hang tight if the Big Snooze pitches a fit. Whatever happens, stay the course, because there's nothing cooler than watching your entire reality shift into one that is the perfect expression of you."
BIG exhale...
Even though this move is temporary, it's still checks quite a few boxes of newness, including living outside of North Carolina for the first time in my life and in close proximity to my brother.
When I created my 18-month business plan, 12-months ago....well, let's just say it's been thrown out the window. AND with all the changes of 2020, there's been a magical shift occurring. These forced pauses, and sits have been transformational in the most uncomfortable, and beautiful, ways.
I've felt both supported and alone, and grateful and super confused. And, full disclosure, I've also been watching Frozen 2,on repeat. The words of the Troll King ring true and have been guiding me, "When one can see no future, all one can do is the next right thing."
Family + ocean + road trip with my bestie = the next right thing for me
Doing the next right thing creates ripples of HELL YES, and there are double bonus points if it's never been done before. I'm forever choosing pathways of joy over fear, and it's far from a perfect practice but it does get easier to shift quicker.
**homework** google "samskaras and creating new neural networks" or stay tuned for future workshop offerings ;)
I'm using this change of scenery to signal the end of that life B.C. (Before Covid), because there is no going back to "normal" for me. And for that I'm grateful, but I've never been great at letting go ;)
This safely chosen travel time marks a decision to shift, once more, from victim to powerful creatrix. All of my -ish is temporary, the roadblocks are proof that I'm moving towards my truest sparkle, AND I got to witness the most beautiful of sunsets in a brand new city. Take that perspective SHIFT!
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