Category: Lindsey

My Six Months of Love

posted 30th January 2011    Written by: Lindsey    CATEGORY: All Posts, Life Lesson, Lindsey, Season 3

I spent this evening practicing new hoop tricks on the bow of a sailboat in George Town, Bahamas. Six months ago, I lived with my parents and I was miserably freaking out about my life. What is there to say, besides the requisite, Me-oh-my, how time flies! How time (and hours of soul-searching, Joy-Planning, Gusty-Girl-workshopping, journaling, meditating, writing, etc, etc, etc) changes everything!

In six months I’ve experienced so many twists and turns and ups and downs that it’s sometimes hard to see where I even started. My roadmap is a bit schizophrenic. But when I back up, I remember, the crushingly painful feeling of being in an ultimate crisis – asking myself, “what on EARTH is happening to my LIFE?” That is how I felt when I started writing for Stratejoy. That was rock-bottom-QLC stuff right there.

But through my weekly posts here, I have been open and accountable with my dreams, my goals, my intentions, my inspirations as well as my fears and doubts. Writing each of my posts was amazing therapy in itself, because I was diving into my QLC head-on, confronting myself, and through it all, I had the amazing Stratejoy community to share and interact with.

I’m a long way from having a clue about my life. And despite all my 5 year plans and life-plotting, I’m sure I’ll still be questioning life then too. But maybe that’s it…

…The greatest lesson of all: The only thing that I know, is that I don’t know anything.

No matter how much we plan, things will go differently. No matter what expectations for the future live in our minds, remember, they are expectations and whatever comes won’t be exactly so. It’s the beauty of life, that we’re not privy to the future. The surprises, those twists and turns that brought you to this page, right now, reading these worlds, they are what make life beautiful.

I hope that every single one of you can overcome the stress of your QLC, and come out of it a better, stronger, more vibrant woman. Remember – it’s hard to face it, that you aren’t satisfied with your life – but when you do, do it with guts and celebrate the fact that you’re making change in your life. Big, amazing, awesome things are in your future. I just know it!

I have several quotes that I have been living by lately, so I’ll leave you with them:

And That’s All!

I’m so grateful to everyone here for writing, for reading, for commenting, for being here. I’m excited to hear what our Season IV bloggers have in store for us in the next six months!

My internet is sketchy for a while because the only time I get a connection is when my boat pulls into a harbor. Since I’m sailing from the Bahamas down to Mexico over the next month, harbors will be scarce. I do attempt to maintain a travel-ish blog, if you’re into that kinda thing.

Thank you for being here. So much. xoxo!

[Note from the Coach: You know what I love about your journey, Linds?  That you don't have everything (anything!) figured out quite yet- but instead of moping at home- you went out there and made one of your BIG LIFE DREAMS happen!  I mean, seriously, you wrote that you wanted to sail around the world, and then.... What?  3 months later?  You're hooping on beaches in the Bahamas.  And while some might call you crazy- I think you're absolutely stunning in your bravery.  Keep following that playful heart, my dear, and I promise life will sort itself out.

Thank you for sharing all the craziness that has been your reality with us.  I know there are tons of Tribe sisters who are not only living vicariously through your adventures, but also, and more importantly- embarking on their own adventure.  Because if you can do it, why can't we?   And that?  That is what true inspiration means.  Thank you, thank for being here with your gorgeous and wise words.  Let's play again soon, sweetness.   XOXO, Molly]

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Ask Me Anything

posted 23rd January 2011    Written by: Lindsey    CATEGORY: Lindsey, Season 3

What do you miss most about being a child?
 Having a trampoline in my backyard. Oh man, that trampoline was my life. My neighbors had a trampoline too and we’d push them together and jump between the two (to the horror of my mother who was sure we’d break our necks with just one trampoline). I loved punching in the well-remembered phone numbers of my neighbors and simply saying “wanna play?” and then meeting at the tramps. Ahh, to play. It’s a way of life.

What’s on your bedside table?

Water

Skin stuff: Yes to Carrots Mango flavored lip balm. Badger balm. A roller applicator of Vitamin E (amazing). Spray bottle of tea tree oil & water – my favorite cooling mist. Coconut oil – best lotion ever.

A rock with the word “Peace” engraved into it, that my mom gave to me the Christmas before I left home 2 years ago. I take it with me everywhere.

Books (right now “The Expressiveness of the Body and The Divergence of Greek and Chinese Medicine” and my favorite raw food book “Fresh” that travels with me everywhere because of it’s small size and endless foodie inspiration.)

My journals

A 0.5 mm mechanical pencil. I go crazy for these. 0.7mm? Meh. And don’t even try to get me to write with a wooden pencil. Or a pen. I simply cannot do it.

When was the last time you were giddy with happiness, lost in one of those can’t-hold-back-a-smile kinda moments?

Hula hooping on a white sand beach at sunset, listening to my iPod, and leaping all over the place practicing new tricks.

What are you most looking forward to in the next 6 months?

Finding out where the hell I’m going to go next – my gypsy self is always interested in that! But also, a family vacation of snowboarding in Colorado this spring, and reuniting with friends.

What’s your hell like?

Eternity surrounded by pessimistic uninspired leeches, working 16 hours a day in a windowless office on an Excel spreadsheet on a Dell computer with a roller ball mouse, eating chicken flavored ramen noodles and Diet Coke for every meal. All while listening to only 90s alt-rock radio stations and staring at tantalizing dark chocolate bars that I’m not permitted to eat, ever.

What’s your heaven like?

Dark Chocolate Coconut Bliss in endless quantities, live bands playing on an outdoor stage, there’s a huge garden and tons of fruit trees, a beach not too far away and I can take a chairlift to the top of a mountain of untouched powdery snow and ride it all the way down to the beach. All my favorite people live here too!

What’s the biggest lesson you’re taking away from the past 6 months with Stratejoy / how has the experience changed you?

Community is everything. Six months ago I was so unsure of myself and I felt so alone. By sharing this online space with Molly, Doniree, Nikki, Marian, Renee, Alisha, and all the lovely commenters I found a place to be open and accountable with my goals and intentions, while admitting my fears and things that hold me back – which was something I generally avoid. Stratejoy is such a wonderful, amazing community, and I feel forever grateful that I’ve had the opportunity to grow & shine a little brighter here these past months, while connecting with so many amazing women.

What song lyrics fit your life, right now, at the beginning of this brand new year?

Hmm, most of the music I listen to is instrumental so this is a tough one. I’m sure there are a lot of songs about freedom and travel but I just can’t think of one. How about this, for my sailor girl self: “Yo ho ho and a bottle of water.”

If you had a time machine, what place and time would you travel to and why?

Definitely a time with dinosaurs. But my time machine would be something out of the Jetsons so I could fly all over and be relatively safe from the hazards, you know, I don’t want it to turn out like Jurassic Park.

What is something that not a lot of people know about you that you wish more people could know?

Ohhh. Tough one. Not many people know where I am, like, geographically. It’d be fun if my family or friends could not only know, but occasionally teleport themselves to my exact latitude and longitude.

What surprised you the most about 2010?

Everything. But, I guess, the most surprising part was everything I learned that I didn’t even know I needed to learn. In the beginning of the year I was all goal-oriented and ready for action, and all those goals withered as I had some major personal revelations and grew in whole new ways that I never expected to. Self-knowledge, self-care, self-love. It was a very self-centered year. And these lessons were invaluable in shaping me today and my plans for tomorrow.

What’s the best present you’ve ever received?

My Caprice! The Grandpa Cruiser! My wheels I got when I was sixteen. Technically, it was my parents car, and it went back to them when I went away to college and it couldn’t handle the constant cross-state commuting. It went out in a blaze of glory though – we sold it to a guy who entered it into a demolition derby. In my eyes, the only way that that era could end.

This picture was taken before the final damage was done. Oh! My poor baby!

Imagine your life was being made into a movie. What would the title be? Who would you pick to play you? What would the theme song be? How about the little trailer blurb for the advertisement?

“Hula Hoop Dreams” (My cremates told me this is what I should name my autobiography because I spend so much of my time hula hooping on the bow of the boat. What can I say, it’s a passion!) Starring Kirsten Dunst because she is my doppelgänger. The Theme Song would be Fort Knox by Goldfish because it’s peppy and groovy and my most favorite song to hoop to. The Trailer Blurb… oooohhh, I have to steal this from a crappy movie I just watched: “She’s a trip, but she’s no vacation.” (Har har har.)

Dream home?

Jungle Gym House! My friends have two huge couches pushed together in the center of their living room that they call “The Pit” – a fitting name for a large pit of pillows and blankets. We expanded the idea to an entire house that you can play all over. Wide open spaces, not much furniture (besides another version of the pit, lots of pillows and low tables). Space for yoga. A big garden. Fruit trees. A dope kitchen with lots of counter space, a gas stove, and a Vitamix blender. A big comfortable bed with lovely sheets and pillows. Definitely hammocks and swings. A big porch. And a fire pit outside with a nice patio. The house will be an old one that I fixed up myself using green construction methods and eco-friendly products. Or one built from the ground up. I dunno, it requires more planning and money still. But it will happen when I settle down one day, in a place as close to my heaven as I can get!

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Stop and Make a Mental Picture

posted 16th January 2011    Written by: Lindsey    CATEGORY: Inspiration, Life Lesson, Lindsey, Season 3, What I've Learned

In the past six months I have undergone radical transformations in my life – from living at home to living on a sailboat in the Bahamas – from ultimate worry about my path to peaceful acceptance of my present situation – from Quarterlife Crisis to an optimistic outlook.

A few months back, I had a realization. I could sit around dwelling on the fact that I was in a “crisis” OR I could choose to celebrate everything in my life, including this period of unknown (which, I got news for ya, I have YEARS of unknown in front of me and that is okay with me! Sort of!!) When I freak out about the coulds and shoulds of my life, I have to remind myself that I am carving out my OWN path, that not one person out there is living this life – it’s MINE – and there is no such thing as what I should be doing, there is only this moment, and my choice of whether I live happily in it.

Molly posted 30 Tips for an Extraordinary Life a few weeks ago and I saved it to my computer. It’s that good. If we all chose to live by these rules, life would be seriously amazing. The one that stuck out to me: “Get clear on your core values. Honor them daily.” My core values were shriveled up in a drawer. Not honoring them daily, that’s for sure. When I peeked at them again, I wasn’t sure how core those values were to me anymore. But how to get clear?

Last year I hit a rut, and my friend suggested I make a mind map. Like the little clouds and bubbles that graphically show your mind on paper. I thought he was being kind of silly – it seemed like grade school stuff. But I did it. And it helped. So much.

Since then, whenever I feel confused about anything, it’s my favorite tool to get myself together. I moved home from beautiful Lake Tahoe, California to live with my parents in small-town Michigan based on a revelation I had while making a mind map. It’s so funny – I was rereading some old journals and one day I was sooo confused about everything, but sure that Tahoe was the place for me. Then I made a mind map that night and the next day I was making arrangements to move home. And that was it. That was the moment I decided to move. Because of some silly clouds and bubbles.

Whenever I get stuck, I always turn back to my mind mapping technique. As the new year came and went I had a hard time deciding what exactly I planned to achieve in the coming year. I love love LOVE my life right now – and I am so incredibly fulfilled in many ways – but I came to a big, confused roadblock when I throught about my relationship and career goals. Mainly because I’m living in my own bubble right now, with no relationships or careers.

I turned to the Joy Plan I finished in August and reassessed my core values. Some of them stayed true, but some I didn’t feel quite resonated with me anymore. I turned back to a blank sheet and mapped out my mind. Using this, and some past maps, I redefined my core values into 8 segments that I FEEL with passion. Some stayed the same, some broke down into separate branches, some changed names to better reflect what I truly value.

Now that I’ve done it, I have 8 values that live in my heart, that I think of and try to honor every day.

Love of Self
Gratitude
Connection
Bliss
Intellect
Health
Productiveness
Value

I know why I feel so fulfilled in areas of my life – I’m working on Love of Self through daily practices, Gratitude through a regular journal, Bliss through living in the moment in the beautiful Bahamas, Intellect through learning new skills and reading amazing books every day, Health through staying active and eating well. I know why I felt lost in my relationships and careers – because I wasn’t honoring my values of Connection, Productiveness & Value on a daily (or EVER) basis. Getting clear on these values gave me a whole new perspective – keep on this path (5/8 ain’t bad!) but work towards honoring all 8, daily.

For those of you that have done the Joy Plan, I encourage you to reflect on your core values a few months afterwards and see how you are living with them. For those of you who haven’t got a Joy Plan, you should totally check it out (I love mine, I travel with it!), but at least sit down and make sure you have core values to guide your life. Try making a map of your mind. Start with your name as the center, and make spokes of the things that are important to you, the things you value now, the things you want to have in your ideal daily life. It’s fun, and sometimes incredibly revealing. And if you do something crazy afterwards, I wanna hear about it!

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5 Years in My Future

posted 11th January 2011    Written by: Lindsey    CATEGORY: Inspiration, Lindsey, Love/Relationships, Season 3

I awaken to the peaceful stillness of early morning and slither out of my cozy bed. I sip a glass of pure water and pad quietly to a pillow on the floor, looking out into beautiful greens and blues, tinted with the dawn sun. I meditate for a while, stretch and move back to the kitchen to prepare coffee. As the water heats, I sit at the table with my favorite journal, and take time to be grateful for all the wonders of my life.

I’m 29, I think I’ve never been happier. Things just keep getting better. I’m grateful for my comfortable home, where I live free of debt, while working to improve it and build it as a permaculture haven. I’m grateful for my love, stirring as the smell of the coffee wafts towards the bedroom, who celebrates life with me, and teaches me to grow as I teach him in turn. I’m grateful for my work, that connects me with inspirational people, uses my creative talents and intellectual abilities, and provides me a postive income. I’m thankful for my yoga practice, that grounds me and connects me with other yogis. I’m grateful for delicious foods, my garden, my fruit trees, and the community around me that supports local agriculture.

As I pour a mug of steaming coffee, I assess my tasks for the day. Caught up in a rush of passionate thought, I sit at my computer and start typing away. Music starts playing over the speakers, and I swivel around to get caught in a good morning hug. “Breakfast?” I nod, and go pick some fresh fruits to run through the juicer while he prepares food.

We part ways after breakfast, he off to work on home projects and in his studio, I back to finish up my writing project before I head down to the community yoga center. After class, I grab lunch at a cafe with some girlfriends. We leisurely catch up over my favorite dishes, and plot out our weekend get-together.

Afterwards I bike to my sailboat to work on some maintenance issues. I’m confident in my ability to work on the mechanical intricacies of the boat, and reflect on how much I have learned about boating and sailing in the last five years. Exhausted and satisfied my projects are completed, I pour myself a glass of iced tea and lie on a cushion with a book as the late afternoon sun warms my hair.

I’m awakened from a light sleep by my boyfriend and several friends. Sunset cruise! We sail in light winds with the setting sun, playing around with the instruments on board, sharing in a meal cooked below deck. When we dock back at the harbor and send our friends home, we talk about our days, edit photos from our last hike and plot our next trips. It’s late, but when I’m tired I simply crawl into the bunk on board, and fall to sleep with the gentle rocking of the boat.

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2011: Kindness, Compassion & Living Out Loud

posted 2nd January 2011    Written by: Lindsey    CATEGORY: Lindsey, Season 3, What I've Learned

As 2010 becomes a year in my past, I am faced with the inevitable reflection and planning for the coming year. These past 365 days on this path of my life have held so many experiences, so many opportunities for growth and life lessons. I am SO GRATEFUL for all that I have learned, for all the people I have met, for all the love that I have shared.

The goals I set for myself in 2010 were incredibly ambitious. Some of my goals I don’t even want anymore, or I don’t feel they are important anymore. Some of my way-distant-future goals are happening RIGHT NOW. (Believe me, I did not imagine myself celebrating the coming of 2011 on a sailboat in paradise.) If anything, 2010 has taught me that anything is possible.

If I could choose one word to describe this past year, to summarize everything, it would be: conscious. I allowed myself to consciously choose my fate. I became conscious of my reality, of the good and the bad, of what I actually wanted and what I didn’t want at all. I became more confident in my path, different as it may be, and I grew closer to being the strong woman of my future.

In 2011 I want my word to be compassion. I want to treat the people in my life with more kindness, more compassion, more love. I want to spread warmth and optimism. I want to give more than I take. I want to listen more than I speak. I want to leave the people I encounter feeling more positive. I want to create rather than take.

Besides living with compassion, in 2011 I also want to

Who knows what this next year has in store – that’s part of the adventure! But I know one thing is for sure: I’m gonna learn. I’m gonna grow. A year from now I’m gonna be stronger and wiser. A year from now I’m gonna have 365 more days of life lessons.

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