31 Things I Know
On the eve of my birthday, musings on a few things I’ve learned after 31 years and 364 days:
Sometimes gluten-full sesame seed bagels with cream cheese can be deeply grounding and truly medicinal.
The concept of slowing down can shift again, and again (and again), to a place of slowness you’ve never dreamed of. If it’s the season for it, and you have the capacity, make space. It’s the most curious and wonderful thing.
A consistent meditation practice takes discipline and structure but it will get you everywhere.
When you really make a point to hear and stop your own complaining, life becomes much more enjoyable. One way to do this is to take that which you were about to complain about and creatively transform it into a compliment.
Sending packages to old friends is such a rewarding way to remind them you care.
Participating in a CSA or weekly farm-share box is such an easy, proactive way to eat local and in season when you are super busy.
Crystals, plants and natural candles make the best presents.
When the emotional tide rises, the best way to re-ground is through being outside. Even if it’s freezing or 100 degrees. A few minutes sitting near a tree, and putting feet on the ground is far more valuable than replaying a conversation, situation, or fear-fantasy in an unmoored mind.
When feeling stuck, dancing, power walking, or truly any kind of moving is a valuable way to un-stick.
Trust your instincts. Even if it feels like you’re being rude. The inner GPS in you knows on a level far deeper than polite niceties.
Following the (fun!) breadcrumbs of your cravings - for specific foods, movies, music, activities, people, etc. - is a great way to quickly reconnect to that inner guidance system.
A fast track to joy in adult life is remembering what brought it as a child and doing more of those things.
Anger always poisons the one harboring it more than the one it’s harbored for.
Accomplishing the goals that both excite and scare you (like recording my first kundalini video series) is an amazing way to prove to yourself you can do what you came here to do. Break the bigger, scarier goals into smaller steps. Organize those steps. Start with step 1.
Even when you love being a student and plan on remaining one for the rest of your life, sometimes you have to simultaneously take and own the seat of the teacher.
Making friends in your 30s and beyond doesn’t have to be hard or weird. It can be as simple as striking up a conversation with a friendly person at a coffee shop or yoga class. It just takes an open heart.
Iced green tea is 1,000,000 times better than iced coffee.
Falling in love with your life is a daily choice. There are days that is easy to do, and days that takes humungous effort. Either way, it’s still a daily choice.
Investing in my health before, during, and after pregnancy is one of the best pieces of advice I’ve received along this whole journey. It has allowed a kinship with my body and a deeper layer of understanding, gratitude, and trust than I’ve ever had before.
Allowing yourself to be happy - truly happy - for other peoples’ great successes is one of the ways to guarantee your own continued joy. If this is something that takes effort (as it has for competitive-as-heck-me), working at it is worth it.
Cold showers seem like the craziest thing in the world. And they ARE crazy. But they are also one of the quickest ways to feel and look amazingly radiant.
Apparently when you are pregnant, it can feel like your water broke in the middle of the night when you’ve just peed yourself. Don’t worry, false alarms are part of the fun.
You don’t have to go on a big fancy retreat to create inner space. But you do need to set the intention, carve out a few hours, shake up your surroundings, and put your phone down.
That said, going on a big, life-changing trip once in while like my trip to India last year, is also an incredible investment in personal and spiritual development.
Prosperity is about so much more than money. And the more I appreciate the prosperity of a full life, the more I receive success on all levels.
The people you know well can continue to amaze, delight, inspire, and surprise you. Everyone has more stories to tell and more secrets to share. The important thing is, are you good enough at asking the right questions and then…listening to the response?
Poets can help find the right words for any occasion.
No one is my friend, no one is my enemy, everyone is my teacher.
When you practice approving, respecting, and celebrating the wonders of yourself, you teach the entire world to follow suit.
A life full of challenges is a life full of incredible growth opportunities.
The best things in life are free and savored by deep presence.
Practice the August Digital Kundalini Yoga class with me from the comfort of your own home.
Photography by the incredible Lust Local