happy february, guys! ready or not, it’s time for a new month, a new playlist, and a new theme. and i am very excited about this one.
after january’s intention-setting days, i hope that we all feel a little focused + inspired + ready to move forward. i know, i sure do and am.
speaking of moving forward, this month’s focus is all about being brave. having the courage to take that next step. to decided to follow our bliss and create that life that we intend to live. this month is all about digging deep + putting forth the action that we need to live the fullest, most amazing, most beautiful, meaningful, and authentic life that we can.
now, that ain’t gonna happen all in one month. but, perhaps putting on a brave front and getting ourselves ready for the journey will be just the step that we need to take in order to live life to the fullest.
so, i have created a playlist, called brave // feb 16 to inspire us each + every day this month. the songs are all about being strong + bad ass. they are about finding that inner strength + power that we need for the journey. and some of them are just what we need to push us + keep us moving in the right direction. so, i encourage you to listen to the lyrics to the words this month. really let them sink into you + remind you who you are, what you want, and that anything is possible.
(click on the photo below to be taken to the playlist).
i am really exited about this month’s theme. i’m already way ahead of the game + have planned out each post for every monday in february. how amazing am i? hehe.
well, it’s easy to plan when you are inspired – and the inspiration just hit me this weekend as i began to think about being brave. and, suddenly, as i was reading some joseph campbell on saturday morning, i realized that bravery was exactly what he was writing about. i furiously took notes, sat and pondered a bit, and spent the weekend just letting it all sink in.
this morning, i knew exactly how i wanted to plan this month’s theme – and what i wanted to write about each month. and here’s what i can tell you: this month, as i talk about being brave to begin our journey, i will be taking us on a journey all along the way.
specifically, the hero’s journey. the journey that calls us forth to leave our old life behind, and to instead embrace and discover our true, authentic life, our bliss. and then to journey on with our bliss, sharing all that we have experienced in our own adventures.
so, here’s how the month is going to look:
- feb 1 // the call
- feb 8 // loneliness + withdrawal :: something feels off-balance
- feb 15 // crossing the threshold :: departure + temptations
- feb 22 // the journey to the center of adventures
- feb 29 // returning with a gift
now, what’s this about a call?
well, i think that it is easy to just to move on in life, doing the things that we are supposed to do. living the life that is expected of us. but, somehow, we get stuck. we live life a bit aimlessly or unconsciously. perhaps it’s a good life. perhaps we even like it. but, deep inside us, there may be a longing. a seeker, a dreamer, a believer that wonders if perhaps there is something more to this life. and we begin to question if we really could follow our dreams. if it is really possible to live that crazy, authentic, meaningful life that we wish for…
must life be rote and expected and just like everyone else’s? of course, i say a big, hearty “no!” to that. for each of us, a true, authentic life looks differently. for each of us, the thing that makes us feel alive, that makes us feel like we are living in the midst of bliss, is totally different.
maybe, however, we don’t feel anything. we don’t have any dreams, per se (because we haven’t let ourselves dream). so, we just keep on living, until one day life throws something at us – it could be good or bad, difficult or amazing. no matter what it is, is appears unexpectedly.
these unexpected opportunities, tragedies, possibilities, and difficulties, in addition to the dreams + gut feelings, and wishes that we have are all a call to the hero’s journey.
they are calling to us to wake up. to become aware. to head out on an incredible journey of adventure to discover that there is so much more to discover about this life than we already know.
the call is this: there is so much more for you. so much amazingness out there. so much bliss. so much that is meant for you. so much that you can give and share and be for this world. the call is to a life of meaning and purpose and bliss. it is a call to discover our inner peace, our place in this world, and a way to live life to the absolute fullest.
what do you think about that? do you hear the call? do you feel it? is it a faint whisper? a loud thumping in your chest? does it frighten you? excite you? freak you out?
don’t do anything with it right now. just listen. just let it be. let it grow inside of you. be aware of it. let your courage begin to grow. connect with your wild, brave, free self. and be prepared… this journey that you are being called to, this life that is out there waiting for you, is more amazing than you ever could have imagined.
and you already have everything that you need for the journey.
together, this month, we are going to ponder all that life has to offer. all that we have to offer. and all that the universe is just waiting to bestow upon us. and we begin, right now, by simply listening for the call…
i sure do hope that you are brave enough to join me on this journey.
xoxo. liz
playlist: brave // feb 16
Daughter of the Woods – Vudu Sister
Don’t Let It Get You Down – Johnnyswim
Leading Me Now – The Tallest Man On Earth, Kristian Matsson
King of the World – First Aid Kit
Ahead Of The Curve – Monsters Of Folk
Come Out Of The Woods – Matthew And The Atlas
The King Of All Birds – Aoife O’Donovan
Scavenger Hunt – The Lowest Pair
Unknown Legend – Shovels & Rope, Shakey Graves
I Of The Storm – Of Monsters and Men
Jealous Of The Moon – Nickel Creek
Traveling Alone – Tift Merritt
The Once And Future Carpenter – The Avett Brothers
Only Thing to Do – Gabriel Kelley
Give That Wildman a Knife/ Bellows Falls/ Waitin’ On a Hannah – The Stray Birds
I was wondering when your next playlist will be online. Of course I stardet to listen to it right away when I saw it. Well as you managet to do so often, the theme just hits the center of what I´m going through right now. Thank you for this playlist and your blogpost today. I needet a reminder.xxx
Loving this theme! Needed a reminder to be brave right about now. Have a few work projects that I have been putting on the back burner (even though I think about them everyday) because I haven’t known how to start. How to jump in. How to be brave in putting myself out there. SO thanks for the reminder love. Happy February.xx
How I loved this one Liz. I do feel the call, but my eyes well up because in my next breath I feel stuck in the mire with no rope. My happy takeaway from this was ‘so much Bliss’. I am posting this on my wall right now. Thank-you!
I am so glad that this spoke to you! I feel very strongly about this theme – and it seems to be taking on a life itself as the month progresses. I hope that your month is going well too. xoxo