Life Lessons

Plugged into Silence

Posted on by Sandi Amorim 26 Conversations

 

The plan was to take a few days off, meander through rural Washington and spend some time with my husband Mark.

Masters of the road trip, we often leave town for 3-4 days with his camera and my laptop in hand.

Time together pursuing our passions. His passion for the seaside towns of the Pacific Northwest often get him out of bed early, while I settle in with a cup of coffee and my laptop. Usually, I organize or find Internet access so that I can check in. Not quite unplugged, but the volume turned down considerably.

This time however, I unplugged completely.

We wandered, relaxed, took photos, read books and enjoyed each other’s company.

Silence crept in, at first like an uninvited guest.

two buddha heads side by side

But I soon found myself appreciating it, my mind no longer wondering what was happening elsewhere. I know from past experiences with silent retreats that I am nourished by silence, but in the busyness of life I forget.

Be here now.

Easier said than done sometimes.

Most times.

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Evolution of A Story

Posted on by Sandi Amorim 18 Conversations

 

Guest post from Rachael Acklin sharing the evolution of her story.

 

I’ve been making up stories about myself since I was a child.

I used to pretend that I lived in Middle Earth, and that the woods behind my house were full of elves.

sunlight in forestI used to climb trees and pretend that I lived out there and could fall asleep on a branch and not fall down.

As I grew older, and had a boyfriend, I told myself that I was boring and not very pretty, because a sixteen-year-old boy found me rather bland.

When I was in my twenties, I told myself that romance wasn’t all it was cracked up to be, and that a husband who came home every night was better than excitement.

Later when he left me, I told myself that I was used and damaged and nobody would ever want me.

But I also told myself that I was capable of taking care of my two little kids on my own, and that I didn’t need anyone else.

Then a year or so later I decided I did need someone else, and I pretended I was happy that way.

It’s taken me years of pain and heartache, along with beautifully sunny days full of smiles and laughter and the love of my children, to see that so many of the stories I’ve told myself are pure and utter bullshit.

And that I can leave them behind, not just to write a new story, but to see myself for who I really am.

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Today You Are You, That Is Truer Than True (or how I celebrated my birthday)

Posted on by Sandi Amorim 18 Conversations

 

48 years ago I burst into being.

It was Easter Sunday, I was two months early and took my mom by surprise. She says I’ve been impatient ever since. They say patience is a virtue, but it’s never been one of mine. Mostly, I’m not too upset about that.

I love birthdays. I always have and I always will.

What’s not to like?

  • Cake
  • Gifts
  • Parties
  • Surprises
  • Attention
  • Celebrations
  • Cards in the mail
  • Candles and wishes

I love. . .All. Of. It.

48 years.

And what I know without a doubt is I’m here to live out loud. I’m here to live authentically.

And I am here to help you shine.

Some days I feel like a supernova, burning so brightly I may explode before fading from view.

There’s an urgency I’m starting to feel. I’m on a mission to live as fully as George Bernard Shaw put forth in Man and Superman,

“I want to be thoroughly used up when I die, for the harder I work, the more I live. I rejoice in life for its own sake. Life is no ‘brief candle’ to me. It is sort of a splendid torch which I have a hold of for the moment, and I want to make it burn as brightly as possible before handing it over to future generations”.

Today I’m out celebrating a life well lived.

I’m not quite ready to hand over the torch, but I’m happy to share some things I’ve learned along the way.

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How to Stop Singing the Blues

Posted on by Sandi Amorim 15 Conversations

 

You’re on top of the world, feeling good and life blindsides you.

What do you do?

Do you pick yourself up right away and move onto the next task at hand?

Or do you sing your own personal version of the blues?

We’ve all been down that road. But what I’m curious about is how you get through it. Just to be clear, I’m not saying there’s one right way to get through it.

On the contrary.

What works for you may not work for someone else, even when you have a similar issue.

So how do you know what will work?

Experimentation and good ol’ fashioned research! Over the years I’ve tried numerous ways to get myself through it when the blues come out of nowhere and pull me in!

While it’s not always easy to coach yourself (in fact, sometimes it’s nearly impossible!) the more tools you have in your toolkit, the more resourceful you’ll become over time. Not quite the same as having your own coach on speed dial, but in a pinch, self coaching can make enough of a difference to get you heading in the right direction.

If you’re like me, there are times in life when you can still be knocked off kilter when things don’t go the way you’d planned, and head into a tail-spin of “Lady Sings the Blues!”

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Burning Down the House

Posted on by Sandi Amorim 24 Conversations

 

Late last night the fire alarm went off in our building, startling me out of my not-quite-asleep state. We’ve had numerous false alarms in the three years we’ve lived here, which usually end up being a quick hello with the neighbours.

Last night was different.

It was like an episode of Rescue Me, only I didn’t see Dennis Leary anywhere.

Mark and I got up, moving rather slowly, thinking it was probably just another false alarm. Then we saw the flames on the rooftop on the other side of the building and the adrenalin kicked in.

In my pajamas, I grabbed my wallet and iPhone as someone pounded on our door to leave. My heart started racing.

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