Thursday Thought: On Intentional Living

There is so much potential running through the human race, wouldn't you say? Guys, we can't even help it, because it's in our blood. We are made of the same greatness that causes the rivers to run deep and the mountains to rise high. It pretty much lights a fire in my soul just thinking about it!

I feel this incredible connection to the earth and other living things. I marvel at what other species are capable of or have overcome, and it serves as a reminder that we are dang incredible too! People were made to do amazing things, but we don't always live up to our potential for so many different reasons.

From what I've experienced, one way of understanding and tapping into that potential is through intentional living, and here are a few things I've applied to my little self that remind me of the possibilities:

| Appreciate Living Things | I have to spend some time outside every day or, as I've discovered, I get grumpy. I need to feel the world under my feet on a mountain trail or sift through the dirt in my vegetable garden, or show some TLC to my flowerbeds. It puts me in my place in relationship to other creatures, and I often discover reminders of the relatively fragile state of living in this big wide universe. Understanding mortality and that lovely circle of life puts things into perspective for me and encourages me to do my best in this little life I can offer to the world. Likewise, when working with the earth, I also find examples of hardiness and survival that are just as inspiring. People are amazing! We can do hard things. I mean, really really hard things. I try to not be intimidated because it seems like the bar has been set pretty high. Appreciating the life I have been given, seeing myself with an eternal perspective, and understanding my role in relationship to other beings is something I've found essential in living my life with real intention.

| Reevaluate Traditions | I don't know about you, but our family has some pretty silly traditions. Some have deep roots that have been passed down for generations, and some are just little seedlings that we're experimenting with. From how I see it, the purpose of a tradition is to act as a reminder of and important event, feeling, or person. Not all traditions need to be serious, but we constantly reevaluate them to make sure there is a higher purpose or meaning behind them. If not, we adjust so that it can be a meaningful metaphor or ritual.

| Find the Potential in Others | There's nothing quite like seeing what other people can do to make me feel inspired! I love seeing others overcome obstacles or achieve awesomeness through hard work. I find that when I let others know how much greatness I see in them, I feel the greatness growing inside of me too. Sometimes this means giving someone a boost of confidence or a shot of courage right in the butt to get them moving on the path you see them on in the future. Goethe said, "If you treat an individual as (s)he is, (s)he will remain how (s)he is. But if you treat him(her) as if (s)he were what (s)he ought to be and could be, (s)he will become what (s)he ought to be and could be." True dat, Goethe, my man.

| Live a Simple Life | Guys. There is so much darn distraction in this crazy modern world. I try and keep my life simple as in I don't go places that I know will make me feel dissatisfied with what I already have (like the mall). I frequent places that uplift and help me be a better person (like the library). I keep my tech to a minimum (confession: I've only had texting for 6 months!) and don't allow myself to feel obligated to follow the newest trends even though I can appreciate them. I regularly get rid of things I don't need or use to keep clutter from accruing. I grow and preserve my own food. I make things by hand. I go hiking. I love camping! (So shoot me if you must.) I spend lots of time with our nutty family. These are all good things. I realize that any one of these things could make me seem super uncool, but I have no apologies because I feel like these things help me have a purposeful life. Each person has a different definition for simple living. The key is to find what is distracting you right now and a way to simplify it. Increase or adjust simple living practices as needed.

| Savor |  This goes back to appreciating living things but is more general. Savoring a moment doesn't mean it has to be a super happy experience to appreciate its value. There is deep value in all kinds of experiences, especially if it turns out to be of the learning variety. A common practice I do is to visualize (even though it's cheesy and reminds me of exercises I did in elementary school.) Close your eyes and memorize what the air feels like. What temperature is it? Is there a breeze? What sounds do you hear? What olfactory goodness is wafting your way? Who are you with? What other tactile treasures did you not realize you were experiencing? What is truly important for your life in this moment? How can you ensure it remains important? Then open your eyes and soak it all in!

I'm not claiming to be a hardcore minimalist, and I understand that each person has slightly different needs. Taking the time to really think about why and how you are living, though, can be life-changing. So, yeah. This is what I've been thinking lately, and I'd love to hear any other thoughts on the subject. Please share!

Thursday Thought: on Gratitude

I believe that gratitude can bring out the best in people, and instead of sharing my philosophies on gratitude, I thought I'd share some of the thoughts that I've been ruminating on today:

Dear little seeds, I'm so thankful you're growing! Your happy faces peeking through the dirt made our morning a lot better. You have given me a great opportunity to teach my daughter about hope and patience and growth and how those three things often work together. Keep it up, little hope warriors.

Dear daughter, thank you for all of your eager help today! We got so much done today and I love it when you help me with all the goodness of your golden heart. You are so full of love. Thank you for letting me hold your two-year-old hand and getting to know your old soul better. Doesn't it feel like we've known each other for eons?

Dear dreamguy, it's been an arduous week for both of us, and I'm so thankful that when we both got home from work kind of late today to a cluttered kitchen and a stinky garbage can and an overgrown yard that you ordered a pizza without even asking. Because heaven knows I was too dang tired to even throw a salad together. Pizza never tasted so good and you are so hot right now!

Dear garden, thank you for helping me find my center today. Digging around in the dirt and chucking those durn weeds in the trash is so therapeutic. Boy am I glad we can start spending more time together, old friend.

Dear mountain mother, thank you for the lessons you've taught me this week. Thank you for opening my heart to your wisdom and for teaching me about the nature of fear. That lesson is still at the forefront of my mind, and I'm eager to learn what more you have to teach me on the subject.

Dear little bro, thank you for our lunch date today. It was soooo delicious, but the best part was hearing about your progress in following your dreams. You are an excellent example of keeping up hope and patience and growth. You're on your way to becoming a mighty Sycamore, buddy, and I love being witness to that.

What have you been grateful for as of late? I'd love to hear!

Watercolor Words How-To

I've been fiddling around with watercolors lately in conjunction with my WOTY (or word of the year) and thought I'd share a little tutorial on how it was done.

Thursday Thought: On Fear

Before I begin my tale, here's a little back story for you:

I go hiking several times a week. I'm not super hardcore or particularly good at it, but I love it and feel lonely and out of sorts if I haven't hit the trails at least every other day. It's something I do to reconnect with myself and my mountain mother, refocus my thoughts, appreciate the small things, and practice respect for life, no matter how small (or creepy) it seems.

I've gone by myself regularly or with others for a few years, but starting in January, a couple beautiful souls have regularly joined me on my expeditions. These adventures have now become our adventures, and I have learned many things from my hiking buddies. I believe that people are in my life for a reason and that I can learn something new from every soul.

With a back story like that, this tale of course, begins with a hike:

This week we were feeling particularly adventurous and took a detour from the main trail and followed a path (probably a deer path) leading along the base of some cliffs. It wasn't death-defying by any means, but it required complete attention to the trail and our surroundings. The path inclined along its merry way up a rock every now and then and the trail narrowed on some slopes, but I was in no danger (except for maybe slipping a few feet and landing on my bum or getting tangled in some scrub oak).

There were signs that people had been on the trail before. Someone had gently hung a pine cone on a outreaching branch. You know, the kind you cover with peanut butter and seeds to share with birds. Someone had erected a makeshift monument and hung wildflowers from it. We had observed the swallows dancing unpredictably and swooping from these cliffs on our way up to this point, and I could watch them command the air for hours. Despite the encouragement I should have felt from these signs along with the reassuring words from my buddies, I still started to feel the fear build in my heart.

I became distracted from our goal, which was to discover new paths and follow the trail around or up the cliffs somehow. I was distracted by my shoes, which weren't the sturdiest for the terrain we were gallivanting over. I was distracted by the things I was carrying because my pants pockets were too small and my hands were occupied with hanging onto objects rather than steadying my footing. I was distracted by what I was munching on. I was distracted by my companions and started to worry for them. I was even distracted by the beautiful signs I had previously been appreciating (Was that monument a cross because someone died in this spot? Are those swallows trying to knock me off-balance by their dive bombing? This is not why I go to the mountains!). All of these thoughts started to fill my heart as I made my way more slowly up the trail.

The terrain became rougher. We had not been on this trail before and didn't know where (or if) it would connect to better-known trails. I was carefully weighing if we were reaching a point where it would be difficult or dangerous to retrace our steps, and luckily I wasn't alone. We communicated with one another and several times paused to discuss the practicality of continuing. After stopping for the third or fourth time, we realized an ultimate decision had to be made. We could continue along the unknown path but we were running out of time to explore. We could turn around and make our way down to guaranteed safety. Or, we could iron-woman it up some rocks to the top of the cliff, which we knew connected to a frequented trail but couldn't see because we were so close to it. You know, the forest for the trees and all that stuff.

I took careful inventory of my fears and realized that I could change what was distracting me for starters. I finished the snack I was munching on (ah, the focus was already coming back!), I shifted the things I was carrying so that I could use my hands better (efficiency, people), and I found my footing on solid rock (it had been there all along). I took a deep breath and we started to scramble up the rocks to the top of the cliff. And just like that, we were standing at the top.

It wasn't difficult at all. It had only appeared to be intimidating. My fears had partially ignited from the distractions I had placed on myself. (I totally had better shoes in my car and had just chosen not to wear them. Dumb.) The main portion of my fears were only because this trail had been unknown. Guys. The trail wasn't more than five feet from where we pulled ourselves up the cliff. And the view was amazing! As soon as I reached the top and could turn around my mind was blown with what I had just accomplished!

I soaked up the breeze and the warm sun rays and marveled at the magnitude of this crazy world. It's like a window the size of the mountain opened up and let in the most precious light and cast out all the doubtful shadows I had been trying to push down. My fears were instantly replaced with a bravery and pride that I haven't felt so strongly before. I realized that I had been afraid of nothing more than the unknown, which it isn't anymore.

We hiked down the trail in the highest of spirits, enjoying those spirited swallows swooping joyously around our heads and feeling so rejuvenated by what we had accomplished and excited to share this experience with others. On the way down I pondered on the metaphors found in the experience. I considered the parallel this was to my life journey, especially regarding decisions I've made recently. I considered the negative influence of distractions. I considered the purpose of friends. I considered the importance of having a solid footing and looking beyond what is see-able. I considered the nature of fear. I considered the nature of courage. I pondered the pride I felt standing among the swallows that had appeared to high and unreachable when we first started our journey but that we had risen to join. I learned a lot about my relationship with fear and am making some changes. I have found a fiery focus again that I realized I had become distracted from. Experiences like this is why I go to the mountains.

There are many refocusing rituals I use, but my most used (and usually the most effective for me) is to take a stroll through my mountains. They are sacred to me. Some people I love need the sea just like I need the mountains, some need a favorite furry friend, or some need personal rituals to bring purpose and focus to this beautiful thing called life. I'd love to hear what you do to recharge or encourage self-discovery. What are your mountains?

Here's To a Relaxing Weekend

This week just hasn't been mine, you know. It wasn't terrible by any means, but enough weird things happened that it kind of threw off my game. It's not a big deal because these weeks happen now and then, but I'm looking forward now to a laid-back weekend. We're planning on doing more yard work (weather permitting) and listening to General Conference for a spiritual recharge. (Yes!)


Here's what helped me take much-needed breaks this week:

This too-true instructional list for how to put a toddler to bed. Let's just say we've had our struggles this week and 100 easy steps seems nicer than what we've been dealing with around these parts.

I love this song so much! And I may just need to go on a month-long road trip now that that darn itchy travel bug is in my blood.

Hiking always boosts my spirits!

I like the retro feel of this lettering, plus the phrase cracks me up.
 

What about you? Do you have anything relaxing planned for this weekend? Do share!