Last week I lived in a tent. I slept on a thin bedroll and woke with bruises on my hip bones. I got really dirty, and bathed in hot springs. I got really hungry and ate my share of the incredible vegetarian food that had been prepared for this community of socially-conscious entrepreneurs in the middle of the desert in Arizona. I didn’t turn on a computer or a cell-phone (though I did read from my Kindle every night). Yoga in the mornings, discussions of the future of money and business in the afternoon. I learned last week about the comforts that can be found when you make yourself very un-comfortable.
Upon arrival, I wasn’t even comfortable in my own skin. I can’t remember feeling so insecure around a group of people since I was in college. I questioned why I came, and whether any of the other attendees would “get” me. The “clothing-optional in the Hot Springs” note on the info sheet should have read – “don’t bother with bathing suit… no one else cares if you’re naked.” Yowsa – we ain’t in New England any more.
And it’s exactly where I needed to be – to share with you the following lessons in ENOUGH:
1) You don’t need much when you’re surrounded by a loving community.
2) We would be much healthier as a culture if we would embrace the idea that food should be treated as a precious commodity that must feed the whole.
3) Quiet time in nature – especially environments that are in stark contrast to your “normal” – provides amazing gifts.
4) Differences of perspective, opinion and experience can create a new currency.
5) Technology is a tremendous distraction to actually living our lives, AND is an incredible tool for creating connection. Use it purposefully.
6) Children can live without their Mommy for a week, and (even crazier) their Mommy can live without them.
7) Love is an amazing substitute for stuff.
Incorporating these ideas into your life?
Get connected with people in your community. I encourage you to reach outside of your current circle. Find a Women’s Group, or join a different yoga studio. Identify the person you know whose ideology and opinions are the most different from your own – and invite her to lunch. Release judgement and see what you can learn.
Consider the amount of food that your family really needs, and eliminate the rest. Especially processed, easy foods that provide little nutrition for the money.
What can I say… take the plunge, buy the ticket, get in the car. Be brave and follow your heart to where you want to go. Go see a new corner of the world. It does not have to be expensive and it doesn’t have to be alone (though I highly recommend it!).
Release attachments – to people, to things, to ideals, to supposed-to’s. This is the hardest one, right? Especially as it pertains to our children. I’m still practicing and learning about this idea. It’s hard. We want to be attached to people. We want to do what’s best for them and take care of those we love. Yet, to find our ENOUGH, we need to let go so that we can truly figure out what that means… more to come from me on this one I suppose.
Finally, loving people instantly is a really amazing thing. We’re taught to protect our hearts and wear masks to hide what we really think and feel. This community at Eden Hot Springs taught me that by taking off the masks and telling the truth about what we want and who we are is the instant pathway to love. I’ve never been so touched in my life as I was by the stories shared in a tent, in the middle of a dust storm, in the middle of a desert. With dust in my eyes, and in my teeth, and stinky armpits and sunburned shoulders… I had enough.
