Peace of Mind

“Set peace of mind as your highest goal, and organize your life around it.” ~Brian Tracy

(We heart Cali.)

SoCal/Joy

Greetings from SoCal, where I’m currently feeling very content–nourished by early morning beach strolls and pier wanderings with my parents, solitary yoga atop silky sand, lazy afternoon sits by the pool, succulent fish tacos (and plump shrimp burritos and chocolate-topped ice cream sundaes and and and…you get the point, I’ve been indulging:)), but most of all–having my entire family under one roof. It doesn’t happen all that often these days and, when it does, I’m very, very grateful.

Tonight I’m falling into bed a little more tan, a little more exhausted, a little more calm and a lot more thankful.

(*Photo taken today at the lovely San Diego Safari Park)

Beauty is whatever gives joy.~Edna St. Vincent Millay

Your Right Life

‘The only map of your right life is written on your soul at its most peaceful, and the only sure compass is your heart at its most open.’
–Martha Beck

That explains it

A-ha. I’m getting it, slowly.

Right now, grateful for time with family and scenes like this. Ocean air mmmm.

Get quiet

Ps. San Diego/family vacay-bound:)!

Dive In

Along the same lines of that breathing easy theme….

(By the by, there’s a good chance I’ve already posted this, and I’m just forgetting, but oh well. I love it so much, I’ll post it again! Oh, and the font on all my earlier posts seems to have gone all wonky/italicized on me. I’m not quite sure what’s going on there, but, no matter.)

ENJOY. This (below) is something I believe, more and more, to be absolutely, undeniably true.

This week, for some reason, I am LOVING this song.

HAPPY FRIDAY!

Just. Breathe.

Surf, sun & sand (sprinkled with doses of other stuff)

My weekend snapshots provide glimpses of attempts to soak up every second of this glorious season. (And not to boast too much, but these past days, I’d say I’ve been doing a pretty darn good job of it:))

You will see water (and more water! Pisces heaven), city skyline views, reunions with friends, lazy park sits, exquisite sunsets and sensational scenes that suggest that ALL is right in the world. I belly-laughed with an old friend as we caught up over a picnic on my favorite Seattle mound. (We got goosebumps as we witnessed a petal-strewn marriage proposal under a fire-streaked sky.) I rode my bike, carefree, down the canal trail; I wandered the Sunday market; I heard music from guitars and a violin and the nostalgic drone of bagpipes.

*Pause: I do think it is sometimes important, however, to acknowledge that these snapshots only tell part of the story. There is some danger in this odd existence where social media and the vetted-for-public versions of our daily lives prevail. Clearly, these pictures don’t capture a few weekend lowlights, like terrible Sunday morning listlessness and a serious WHAT-THE-EFF-Universe moment Friday afternoon that had my emotions running rampant and my mind/heart feeling lightyears away from Zen. Although these moments were brief in the grand scheme, they were real, and they stung…..Like Susannah cleverly confesses, we shouldn’t be fooled into thinking that others’ lives are always “all rainbows and unicorns over here” (despite what highlight-reel-recaps or colorful slideshows tend to suggest).

But the main point, I suppose, is that there WAS (and remains to be) so much amazingness, and this is where we must focus the lens. Sometimes it is too easy to get hung up on the hurt or the scared or the sad, or whatever threatens to plague. But, as always, I practice (and practice some more) shifting the emphasis. On bringing to light what is really, really great–on the billions of small (and big) ways I continue to be blessed.

On Saturday morning, I went paddle boarding (so fun!), where four of us drank in surreal mountain and lighthouse views. We spotted a regal blue heron, bobbing, iridescent jelly fish and a playful seal splashing his way across the sound. We saw a rainbow arch its way around the midday sun (so in this case, in that moment, it actually was all rainbows).

On the journey back to the shore, I really got in the groove-pushing meters ahead of my fellow paddlers-feeling steady and strong as I slid along atop the water. For a wee while there, I lost myself in the rhythm of my strokes, the repetitive swoosh of the oar, visions of hypnotic, dancing light beams below. Afterward, kissed with sun, plastered with seaweed and sprinkled with sand, we rewarded ourselves with JUICY Paseo Cuban pork sandwiches on picnic tables next to the bustling surf shop. Bliss. Like a child just in from a day at the beach, I felt tired and sore and joyful and alive. In moments like this: LIFE. IS. GOOD.

Waking up

“Anyone can slay a dragon, he told me, but try waking up every morning and loving the world all over again. That’s what takes a real hero.”~Brian Andreas

Bridges

‘Never burn your bridges; you may have to cross them again.’~Marie Murphy

(I’ve been reminded of this several times recently…)

Hope the weekends are being good to you, friends.