When the timing is right

Going with the flow would have to be one of my biggest struggles. I am naturally a planner, (I can't help it, I on the cusp of Leo/Virgo). Surrendering and riding the wave has been a process. Years in the making. My yoga and meditation practice has taught me a lot about the importance about being present, but until recently I hadn't truly understood how crazy cool this can be.

Getting out of my head and just being has really given me the opportunity to flow and listen to my gut, my intuition, my inner knowing - whatever you want to call it. 

                                                        Image credit - pouracid.tumblr.com 

It's as if space has become all of a sudden available for me to tune in. Tuning in has opened up so many doors and opportunities that I had been resisting for a long time. It's as if the time and energy I was spending projecting into the future and worrying about situations has been shifted and now I am using this energy to my benefit. It's been powerful.

Rather than doing what's 'right' and what I 'should' do...I have been simply doing what feels right to...me. 

Doors have opened - those that needed to close did. Opportunities have become available, others that no longer served me fizzled. Friendships made and others faded and special connections forged. My biggest struggle is fighting my inner-ice queen - I am flowing by cracking open with utter vulnerability. Scary. All with simply being in-synch and taking note of the magical synchronicity that is happening all around me.

There's something about...Aga

From the moment I even heard about this woman, I knew we would get along. I started a new job only a few months ago, from the get go we clicked. It is always nice to find a kindred spirit!

Aga is a special woman. She's fiercely strong, beautiful, feisty, with a zany sense of humour whilst being such a gentle soul. She has such a big heart and I had no doubt in my mind that somehow we would join forces. 

Aga runs her own Yoga business called BlissMe Yoga. Here is some more about her:

How did your yogi journey begin? 

I had some major injuries after a car accident that eventually lead me to the mat, as soon as i started yoga I fell in love with it and the way it made me feel.

What does a typical day off look like for you? 

A healthy brekkie, walk with my little Daschound and some yoga of course. Some laps at the pool and a catch up with friends and and quality time with my partner - this could mean Para-gliding, scuba diving or a lazy movie day :)

What are some of your fav activities to rest and recalibrate? 

Meditation and yoga nidra, a swim and cuddling my pup.

What does ‘recalibrate’ mean to you? 

To me it’s about resetting my energy and my mind set. Bringing myself back into my body and feeling centred and happy.

What's your fav yoga pose? 

Half moon pose (Ardha Chandrasana) - a real feminine energy power pose.

What's the best advice someone has given to you? 

Live in the present moment and do as much of what you love as you can. Eat your vegetables and shag a lot!! hehe 

You can find out more about Aga here.

The flow of balance

2015 has just started and one of the things I want to do more of, is to go bike riding. I found this little piece a while back that I wrote about an experience that is still etched in my memory today...

I hadn’t ridden a bike in years. Fear may have gotten in the way… it was something I really enjoyed doing in my childhood and often reminisced about riding my bike, as I grew older. I just had so many reasons validating why I couldn’t do it anymore. I was feeling like a butterfly whilst on a trip to Bali, doing my Yoga Training. I was doing things that stretched me physically, emotionally and spiritually. I had also met so many amazing people. I just felt like I was in a nurturing environment. One night I needed to use the Internet and my fellow yogi offered me to come to her villa to do so. It was getting late when I finished and she offered me to use her bike to cycle home.

Free as a bird with my yogi sisters in Canggu, Bali

Normally, I would have just walked, but instead I decided to hop on. After all, this was a trip about personal growth. I must admit I was a little scared at first, it had been years, the bike was way too big for me and the breaks were not working as good as they could. All those qualms soon melted away though when I began flying through the quiet streets of the small Balinese town we were staying in. Time had shifted to slow motion, I was taking in everything, it was a sensory overload - the moon brightly lit the night star-filled sky, I could hear the waves crashing of the ocean, the smell of frangipanis intoxicated me, it was a warm balmy evening. It was beautiful. I could not get the huge smile off my face. I felt confident, free, alive and like a child again. I didn’t really know the way back and there was not much street lighting, but it didn’t matter – I could ride a bike again! 

     I always loved time on my bike!

This was clearly in a hypoegoic state, my focus was on the experience, not on the consequences or on my predetermined fears. 

I pedaled along a plethora of rice paddy fields, shot past stray dogs that barked with such anger. Fear had eluded me. Excitement and awe consumed me.  

I was experiencing flow, through being totally at one and engrossed in the moment. I was living my dreams. I found it so difficult to get to bed that evening from the buzz. I must have fallen asleep smiling J.

I remember this experience still quite vividly and still smile.

A collective state of mind

With Christmas just around the corner, the idea of having my loved ones together and connecting is at the forefront of my mind.

But what about those not within our inner circles? Or those who have drifted out of our lives for one reason or another? Maybe it is time to break down those barriers and reach out.

We live such highly connected lives, yet we still suffer from high levels of anxiety, loneliness and social isolation.

Going wide

I was recently introduced to the idea of going wide. The late Steve Jobs was used as a reference point here, whereby he would 'drop-in' to calligraphy classes after dropping out of his degree. The knowledge Jobs gained came in handy down the track, namely when typefaces were born! 

This concept also works with people as much as it does with expanding one's mind creatively. Opening up your inner circles introduces you (and your mates) to people outside your everyday life, people who have diverse backgrounds, ways of thinking and values. It's a win, win.

I find the more my social circle opens, the more I see how inter-connected we really are and that six degrees of separation is no myth.

                                                          Right now my world's are seriously colliding - and I love it!

Having a collective state of mind is not hard, it may be as simple as inviting a new person along to your usual breakfast catch up, having a party and mixing all of your friends together, inviting people along to things that are you consider an acquaintance...that simple act could change your status friends. 

You can never have too many friends at the end of the day right?

Maybe I was wrong

I really can't say whether it is just age, but over the years, I seem to have taken back many of those 'I would never' statements that I have made. It rattles me in a way, and sometimes it makes me feel super fickle, but on other days it just shows that I am adaptable and flexible and open to changing my beliefs on things and I kind of like that.

The funny thing is that the things that I was most passionately opposed to, are what I have really back-tracked and ultimately changed my mind on and really taught me the most valuable lessons. 

I would never...

I was opposed to living by myself, travelling alone, going to Bali and India, backpacking and hostelling, eating meat, trying online dating, living with a random flatmate and living with a friend. Gosh, talk about a whole load of self-imposed restrictions...and all of the above I now done and so grateful that I did too!

                                                       At an Ayurvedic Centre in Kerala, Southern India

I still have a few 'I would never' statements that I have begun to see that maybe I am still limiting life's options...like I always said I would never date a younger guy, but so many couples I know are living and breathing proof that I need to change that one up.

My job

My career has seen me start off in corporate, I became a bit jaded by the whole thing and moved into the Government and not-for-profit sector and said I would never move back into corporate. My aim was to do my bit for the world and work around people who shared a similar value system to me. I've come to realise that just because you work in a certain sector, doesn't make you a good or a bad person. 

Whether you work for profit or on the other side, if you follow your passions and you are making the world a better place - whether it be through bringing innovative products to make our lives easier, designing cool artwork for small businesses or being a human rights advocate, whatever it is, then that is awesome.

I've changed my mind (again)

And yes, I just landed a job back in corporate, I have to laugh, I was really sure I would never jump back over. But you know, I am living and breathing my passions of health and wellness during my 9 - 5, the very thing that lights me up and that makes me happy.

Never say never, as you just don't know.

The Irish Pub light-bulb moment

I've never been a big pub dweller. This changed in the past year, as my life has been filled with Irish people (with the biggest hearts) and what better way to hang with them then to frequent the pub? I have to admit it, pubs slowly grew on me. I guess I always associated pubs and even bars to an extent with simply drinking, I never really saw any substance to it...until I went to watch a brilliant documentary which has literally turned my world-up-side down.

Jilly,  one of my Irish mates and also one of the sweetest people I know, asked me if I wanted to go and see a doco about the institution of The Irish Pub, called just that. As soon as I saw the trailer, I was sold. The film encapsulated the infamous dry Irish humour, the amazing scenery and what struck me the most, was the utter warmth of the Irish community.

Much like a church, a pub is where people come together. The film showed people of all ages in pubs all throughout the country, coming together to share their lives, their woes, their wins.

An old chap was interviewed in the film and what he said really struck a chord with me...he said, why should I go home to an empty house and stare at a box alone, when I could be with my mates at the pub? This really spoke to me...life is about the connections and communities we create. All to often, especially nowadays, we are physically isolating ourselves. We are spending our precious time living life through a computer. Being with your tribe whether at the pub or any location of your choice is always going to make you happy.

I am a big believer that you create your reality and the other day my neighbour, who I have bumped into a few times and always said hi to, but that was about it, knocked on my door to ask for a cup of rice. You have no idea how happy that made me! I know that if I ran out of rice, I would naturally race down the hill to the shops, how self-contained have we become? I gave her the cup of rice and the next day she dropped me off a beautiful bunch of flowers, that made my day. She was so grateful and so was I.

We don't have to be islands. I am so passionate about bringing people together, reaching out and creating communities. Because that is what makes the world so much of a better place to be.

To Instagram or talk?

I have been intrigued recently with the whole concept of going back to basics and living simply. Nowadays, we all lead busy lives and we have an abundance of choices and technology available to us each and every moment of our lives. But sometimes I think these can overcomplicate, desensitise and even break down the core sense of community.

Everything can now be done in the comfort of your own home, you no longer need to physically be at a class if you want to complete your studies, you watch an online lecture on your phone. Which is great and oh so convenient, but I also feel that these great advances in technology mean that the chance of new friendships and relationships forming in a real life and organic manner are now getting less and less possible.

People walk through the streets of the city, never looking up from their phones. I have nearly been knocked out countless times from this. I am guilty of half listening to conversations whilst checking my phone. I once went to a social media lecture, which reported a crazy amount of people checking Facebook before doing anything else when they wake up in the morning.

I may sound very anti-technology. I am not. I just think we are over-doing it...a tad! 

I once dated a guy that refused to conform and did not use a phone. It was cool at the start, but that quickly turned to frustrating when I couldn't communicate if I was running late! I am not advocating that everyone ditch their phones, maybe we re-think how we use them.

One morning I caught a cab in for a morning meeting I was having. I hailed the cab, sat down, put my seatbelt on and told the driver where I was off to. I automatically went for my phone, for no reason, but to fill in the idle time. It was there I decided I had a choice, I could use my phone to distract me or I could have a proper human conversation with the man who was driving me. Luckily, I chose to converse with my Taxi driver, we had such a great conversation about this very topic and I gained a little insight into his life. That conversation made my day.

So next time you are faced with a choice, to needlessly distract yourself with the happenings on social media, or to actually share a story or two with another human, I dare you to put down that phone, go back to basics and chat. You never know what doors will open from it.