Tuesday, December 13, 2011

Reverb11: Day 14 - gratitude

Gratitude - What five (5) things are you most grateful for from 2011?

There are truly so many things to be grateful for from 2011.  I had such incredible experiences, met amazing people, reconnected with old friends, started a new career, and so much more.

To pick only 5 things was a difficult task, but a very welcomed task.  It is always so refreshing to think about the wonderful things in my life!

First, I am so amazingly grateful for travel.  The opportunity to see the things I have seen, meet the people I have met, and experience the things I have experienced is truly remarkable.  I could never trade my experiences for any amount of money, or objects.  I wish everyday for another chance in my lifetime to travel again.


Second, I am grateful for yoga.  I am grateful for all that it does for my mind, my body, and my spirit.  It truly is a gift in my life that I hold very close to my heart.  




Third, I am so very grateful for my family and friends.  I have friends all over the world and they are always ready and willing to talk to me whenever we can organize ourselves accordingly.  They are always there to be an ear, or feel comfortable to vent to me their stresses and issues.  Even if we don't see each other for years at a time, we somehow are able to mesh, fit and be together as if we had never been apart.  My family remain patient with my nomadic tendencies, my wild dreams, and impossible hopes.  They are supportive when and where they can be, and sensitively realistic when necessary.  I am so lucky and grateful for each person that has entered my life, and even for those who have left my life.  All people, passersby or constant, have touched my life in a tremendous, unforgettable way.  I have so much love in my life it is just amazing!






Fourth, I am grateful to have a home, a roof over my head.  Far too many people in the world have no home to call their own, and to think of that fact saddens me to my core.  There is no where that I feel more safe, warm, and comfortable than in my own home.  I truly and honestly love traveling, however it is somehow sweeter knowing that whenever I need to I can go home.  For that, I am forever grateful.

Fifth, I am grateful for the outdoors.  There is nothing like nature to soothe my nerves, calm my mind, and please my eyes simultaneously.  I am very fortunate to have walked through many different forests, jungles, mountains, fields, and deserts.  Each landscape has something different to offer, and each one is equally inviting, relaxing, and uplifting.  





Reverb11: Day 13 - Fears and lessons learned

Fear - What scared you this year more than anything else? Did you learn anything new about yourself?

I wrote about this back when I first came home from traveling and living abroad. I wrote about my anxieties and fears of coming home after so long away.  So that is still my answer!


Coming home scared me more this year than anything else.  Sure there were scary moments while traveling, like going out into the desert on a camel and staying over night in a village in India close to the Pakistan border worried I may be taken as a wife without knowing it, or being threatened with a crowbar by a taxi driver in Vietnam...but the fear of the unknowns attached to coming home far outweighed the fear of becoming a villagers wife or being beaten with a crowbar.


What I learned about myself in my very scary transition home was three fold.  Firstly, I learned that I grow far too anxious about things I have no control over. I create all of these "what ifs" in my head, and really the only answer to the "what ifs" is "so what...if that does happen, I'll still live."


Secondly, I learned that although some of my worries did come true, that there are always very positive things that arise as well.  So instead of worrying about all the potential negatives I should focus more on the potential positives.


Lastly, I learned that being fearful and anxious about things in the future is extremely unproductive and even damaging.  The fear of the 'what ifs' creates stress and tension, and most certainly decreases joy and happiness.  Hopefully I will remember this reflection and remind myself to concentrate on the present moment, and not overly concern myself with the 'what ifs' of the future.




"Whoever can see through all fear will always be safe". ~Tao Te Ching

Reverb11: Day 12 - 12 little things


12 Things - What are 12 things your life doesn’t need in 2012? 
How will you go about eliminating them? 
How will getting rid of these 12 things change your life?

There certainly are things that my life doesn't need.  Some of them are more difficult than others to eliminate.  But what matters is that we work on eliminating those things we don't want or need, as opposed to just accepting its existence in our lives.  

12 things my life doesn’t need in 2012, and that I will try my very best to rid myself of:

1. Stress.  As a yoga instructor, my job is very stress-less.  As the manager of a yoga studio, my job is stressful at times.  As a member of my family, my life is riddled with stress.  Something I have realized is that we cannot control peoples actions, we cannot control illness or death, really we have very little control over things that occur in our lives.  But what we do have control over is our reactions to those occurrences, events, and actions.  So to rid myself of stress I plan to work on my own reactions to the events in my life.  Eliminating stress will allow more joy to come into my life, and it will be such a welcome addition!

2. Anxiety.  I need to let things happen naturally. I tend to become anxious about love, work, and family.  I realize that I need to join the flow of the universe, quit worrying about what will be or should be, because I am not the creator of the flow, I am simply in the flow.

3. Judgement.  We all judge, some of us without even realizing, some of us with full knowledge we are doing it.  Either way I wish for myself to eliminate judgement of both self and others.  It is not productive, it is destructive.

4. Jealousy.  Sometimes i feel jealous of others and their circumstances.  Some people I encounter are very settled and secure in their work life, love life, family life, and life in general, and I find myself feeling a little envious.  I need to simply allow time to develop and explore myself, and my world.

5. Attachments.  It is a constant struggle to remember that a persons happiness is not linked to or identified with anything.  Whatever highs and lows enter my life, I want to remain calm and maintain my happiness.  Knowing that the thing causing the high or low is not linked to my happiness, and that my happiness comes from inside.

6. Negativity. There are a lot of people that carry around negativity, and expel negativity wherever they go.  I tend to receive that negative energy very easily, so I need to eliminate negativity.  This doesn't mean ridding myself of those people that create negativity, just to alter my response to them so that their negativity does not become my negativity.

7. Illness.  Both with myself and with my family.  Unfortunately I have no control over illness within my family, and I have only some control over my health.  

8. People who don't cherish me.  Enough said.

9. Control.  Instead of planning the future, worrying about the future, feeling anxiety about the future, I want to simply enjoy the process in life...then whether I fail or succeed, the result will not weigh heavily on my happiness level. 

10. Living in the past.  Living in the past is deeply destructive, but we all do it.  We need to realize deeply that the present moment is all we ever have.  The future does not yet exist.  The past is over and impossible to change or alter.  I want to make the now my primary focus in my life.

11. People who drive painfully slow and/or don't signal.  Drives me crazy!

12. Clutter.  I need to seriously purge, and seriously organize.  I came home in May thinking that I would be here temporarily and then be off again on another adventure, so I kept things unsettled and cluttered.  I have found my dream job, became an aunt, and have met wonderful people, and know that I will stick around a bit longer than expected so it's now time to fully unpack and un-clutter, and at least semi-settle in to my home again.

I want to live beyond these things.  Live from moment to moment in happiness, health, and harmony.  Live my life with love, energy, awareness, and peace.

Sunday, December 11, 2011

Reverb11: Day 11 - think less. do more.

Day 11: What do you wish you had done more of in 2011?
Anticipation - What is the one thing that you are most looking forward to in 2012?

I wish I had done more of many things in 2011.  After having seeing a girlfriend last night that I haven't seen in far too long, I realized that I wish I had seen my friends more often in 2011.  


I arrived home in May of this year, and started seeing my friends on a pretty regular basis, but then I started working and using that as an excuse to not go out, to be lazy, and to neglect the things in my life that truly make me happy.


Having said that, the one thing I am most looking forward to in 2012 is making time to see my friends, and spending more time with family.  No excuses, no laziness.  Thinking less and doing more. 

Saturday, December 10, 2011

Reverb11: Day 10 - a year of beauty

Day 10: Beauty - Describe a moment of beauty you witnessed this year.

I have witnessed a plethora of beauty this year.  At the beginning of 2011 I was traveling around South-East Asia and India, where there is an overwhelming presence of beauty.  


The greenest of greens.


Cameron Highlands, Malaysia
Senaru, Lombok, Indonesia

Cameron Highlands, Malaysia


The bluest of blues.



Kuta, Lombok, Indonesia

Kuta, Lombok, Indonesia

Jodpur, India


The brightest of brights.


Jaipur, India
Bali, Indonesia
Melaka, Malaysia
Jodpur, India


The friendliest smiles.


Praya, Lombok, Indonesia
Kuta, Lombok, Indonesia
Praya, Lombok, Indonesia

Praya, Lombok, Indonesia

Jaipur, India




The cutest faces.


Praya, Lombok, Indonesia

Siem Reap, Cambodia

Siem Reap, Cambodia

Jaisalmer, India

Ubud, Bali, Indonesia


The clearest waterfalls.


Senaru, Lombok, Indonesia






The most divine sunsets.


Senaru, Lombok, Indonesia

Kuta, Lombok, Indonesia

Vientienne, Laos



The most stunning pieces of architecture.



Taj Mahal, Agra, India

Agra, India

Jaipur, India

Jodpur, India

Jaisalmer, India




The most creative dances.






Melaka, Malaysia




The most sacred temples.


Penang, Malaysia

Siem Reap, Cambodia

Siem Reap, Cambodia

Luang Prabang, Laos

 Aside from all of the worldly beauty I have seen this year, the most beautiful moment of 2011 for me, was the moment I saw my sister become a mother.  The moment I saw my daddy as a grandfather, my mum as a grandmother, and my nanny as a great grandmum.  










Such a precious gift.  Such a miracle.  Such a beautiful moment.