Happy Solstice, loves. What a time of magic + illumination is it! A time when we find ourselves aligned with the great sun. The longest day of the year, when more light is available to us than any other day. So that’s gotta be super magical, right? And there has got to be something absolutely overwhelmingly powerful that we can tap into. Just think… all of that bright light beaming down on us, illuminating our lives, filling our souls. All so that we can soak it up, bask in it, and radiate it right back out into our lives + into the world. It is a highly spiritual day that highlights just how we might find new ways to evolve into an even more aligned way of living.
So, here I am, home in the mountains of North Carolina. Living my best slow life as I try to adjust to a teeny bit of jetlag. So far, I haven’t done much during the days. I wake early + enjoy my quiet morning routines… though they are a bit different than what I practice at home. Here, it’s coffee + wandering on the porch/in the trees. And then a long, slow morning of talking + hanging with my parents. Well, actually, it’s been more like that throughout the entire day. We’ve had storms, Lina’s been working, and I’ve just been super easing into vacation mode. Does it take you a while to slow down + leave your work brain behind?
The thing is, i if I’m honest with you, I feel a little stressed about all of my time off. Mostly because I am wondering how to use it. And, also, when I am away from home, I tend to fall out of those deep routines that keep me balanced + aligned. So, with 6 weeks ahead of me, the possibilities + opportunities are so great that I have allowed myself, during these first days in the States, to wind myself up into some totally unnecessary stress around my time off. How stupid is that? I’m worrying about what I need to do + how I need to spend my time so that I can maximize my time off + align my soul as much as possible while I have the time to devote to these magical soul things. And, suddenly, stress takes over the time that is meant to be the least stressful.
But, just as I wrote those words above, I understood my problem: I’m thinking about the entire 6 weeks + forgetting today. In other words, I’m not in the present. And, from what I’ve learned + what I’ve experienced, as soon as we find ourselves falling back into pondering the past (for good or for bad) or wondering about the future (also for good or for bad), then we forget the present. And this is the root cause of everyday stress + anxiety + worry.
The cure for my freak out on how to use my vacation time to become as aligned as possible is to simply be in the middle of each day. It it to stop thinking about what I need to do over the next 6 weeks, or the best way to use my time next week, or even this week. The only thing I need to be concerned with is how I use my time right now. Today.
But, how do I know what to do + when? How do I know what will best keep me aligned + grounded? Well, that’s when I must rely on my intuition. From moment to moment, I know what I need. And so, it is actually to simply create space for what I need .
Now, let’s be clear. Even on vacation, I don’t get to choose what I want to do 24/7. Of course, there are other people to consider, responsibilities to attend to, and things that just happen. But nevermind all of these things. In any given moment, any given moment friends, I can choose how to respond, react, and be. Even in the midst of difficult stuff, boring stuff, tough stuff, it’s up to me to decide how to be.
So, in every moment I encounter, I am empowered to choose to create that moment. And, it is all of these moments that make up my life. When I am free to choose, it is up to me to decide what my soul desires + needs in that moment. When I am not free to choose, it is still up to me to decide how my soul is guiding me to respond + be.
Today, for example, Lina is working – even though we’re in the States. She’ll be working the rest of this week + the beginning of next week too. So, I don’t have the freedom to just do a whole bunch of couples vacation things with her that we usually do. But, it does mean that I am freed up to do other things that my soul craves. A very unique opportunity while we are here in the mountains. A chance to perhaps focus on something that I otherwise don’t have time to focus on when I am home + working + exhausted. Or, it may also mean that I simply use this week and a half to deeply rest.
The thing is, my soul knows what I need. All I need to do is to trust that intuitive thought. So, today, I woke up. Brewed the coffee. And am sitting here writing. What I’ll do next when my parents wake up, I have no idea. But, I’ll seize that moment according to what opens up. I do also have 2 other intentions for the day: to fix a smoothie for breakfast for me + Lina, and to consider attending a Taizé service down by the lake this evening. Oh, and an idea of perhaps going to a used bookstore with my mom. But, we shall see how it all unfolds.
In any case, for me, this is an aligned life. It’s not meant to be something complicated or something meant for some group of super holy people. It’s meant for all of us. It simply means lining our inner life with our outer world. It means living from our soul. Embodying our soul. Incarnating our spirit.
I also see it as this: We are physical beings, made of flesh + bone. + dust + dirt. A part of the earth. Grounded + rooted. Natural, organic, real beings living + experiencing life in her cycles. But, we are also spirit. Part of the cosmos. Energy, love, radiance, divine. Our spirits flowing from the heavens. Because we are both earth + sky, our souls + our bodies are a sacred meeting point. When we are aligned, then we are connected to our higher consciousness, our spirit + we are grounded down into the wild earth. And, through us, magic, wisdom, love, and energy flow. We become a vessel.
An aligned life is a life that is open, receiving, radiating, connecting, serving, and simply being. It is a life where our soul. And, being aligned, staying aligned, realigning is a continual present moment process of awareness, intuition, and balance. All it requires of us is to listen, feel, create space, and be.
So, here’s to seeking that in-tune, grounded, aligned feeling for today. Let’s focus only on basking in the light + illumination of the great sun high above us…. helping us learn how to soak in all of the magic from the heavens + the earth, and then radiate our own unique light back out into the world.
happy solstices, wild souls. xoxo. liz.
