Category: Wellness

It’s been a while since I’ve blogged. It’s easy for me to lose track of this space when time seems to be on some sort of warp speed! Anyone else notice that? By mid-October last year we wrapped up our preserving and growing season. We usually take longer than that to get through it all but we hustled this year because we were getting on the road for an epic 6-week adventure to the Canada and US Pacific coast. We adjusted some of our processes to allow this to happen. For instance, I didn’t have time to make all the tomato sauce so the last picking was cut and frozen and processed after we returned. Also, since we wouldn’t be eating the winter squash right away we diced and froze it all. This way we wouldn’t come home to any rotten squash stinking up the storage space. Winter squash usually has a very long shelf life, but we just didn’t want to risk it. Other small changes and flexibility in process allowed us to leave worry free.

We traveled from home in Upper Michigan to Washington state and then drove onto the Black Ball Line ferry and were transported to Vancouver Island, British Columbia. We then came back to the U.S. and traveled down the 101 experiencing the Pacific Coast through Washington, Oregon, and Northern California. We had so many new experiences, saw the most incredible places, met many people, navigated through weather of all sorts and road conditions of all sorts, and thankfully avoided an emergency car breakdown by finding a service center that could get us in (more challenge then you would think) to diagnose the issue, order the part, and service the car during our stay on the Oregon Coast. I was so grateful for this crew of people that were able to service the car which led to keeping our family on the road safely. You see, safety and security are very important factors for me, so while they may have just been repairing our car, for me it was so much more. It was during this car repair experience when I was swelling with gratitude that I began to reflect on how impactful our interactions with others can be. At that time I started taking notes to keep experiences fresh in my mind and I’d like to share some with you. I will be brief, but some of these interactions were so much more than that.

Chinatown Docent, Victoria, British Columbia

As Flora and I wandered around the small museum that shared the history of Chinese immigrating to Canada (specifically British Columbia), we were looking at a wall of immigrant documents when one of the docents approached us and started to tell us a little bit more about the documents. She then told us about her own Father’s document, how he immigrated to Victoria, BC and began a job there. He left his wife and children at home in China with the hopes of reuniting with them when he had earned enough money to bring them over. Unfortunately money earning was slow because Chinese immigrants were doing the lowest paying jobs. In the meantime, while her father worked hard to support himself and his family in China, he had received news that his whole hometown had perished in a natural disaster. Knowing his wife and children were gone, he sent to China a request for a new wife, a common practice. She came to British Columbia and they started a family. To them were born our museum docent and her siblings. Ready for the twist? Years later (through research, I believe), this family found out that in fact, the mother and children in China did not die in the natural disaster. So, our docent learned that she had a family of half-siblings still left in China. While it doesn’t sound like the family physically reunited, our docent’s father started to financially support both his family in Canada and his family in China. I was so in awe of this story – a rollercoaster of opportunity and grief and new joy and struggles. So much the immigrant story. What a gift to us to have this docent spending her (VOLUNTEER) time in a place where she can share personal stories which help other people learn about history. 

Kathy, Sointula, Malcolm Island, British Columbia

As you may know we live on an old finnish homestead in the Upper Peninsula in Michigan. We didn’t expect in British Columbia to have the opportunity to learn about a settlement of Finnish people on an island nearby where we were visiting. I knew we had to go check it out. Being out of season, the local museum was closed, but I emailed and Kathy, who is involved in the museum, wrote back and opened it up exclusively for our visit. We made a nice donation expecting to walk about the museum and learn on our own. To our surprise, Kathy gave us a personal tour. Such as here in the Keweenaw, Finns went to Vancouver Island in the late 1800’s for a better life working in the mines. As most immigrants found out, working in the mines wasn’t a good life at all. A group of Finn’s determined for a better life wrote back to Finland requesting the services of a Finnish philosopher who worked with them to build a “utopian society” on Malcolm Island. However, as things typically go, there are challenges along the way. Fire. Death. Lack of access to food and materials (this is on an island long before ferry systems were in place). Conflicts between people. The Utopian society fizzled, but the island remains steeped in the Finnish heritage and philosophy of working together to help your neighbors. Kathy (an expat) told us about her own journey to the island, her interest in the history there and her own experiences. She was passionate to share and how generous she was with her time! Without Kathy we would have visited this beautiful island, but we would never have understood the true meaning of it.

Lastly (although I have dozens more to share), we’ll go to…

David, Sioux Falls, South Dakota.

OK, saying that I hate hotels is putting it lightly. But when we travel it’s inevitable we have a hotel or two on the drive to our final destination. When we arrived in Sioux Falls it was cold, like -9 in November (what the heck South Dakota?!). I didn’t want to be at the hotel. We were on the homestretch, but hey, you gotta sleep. We unpacked the car and headed in. We were greeted by David, the guy behind the desk. After checking in we asked if there was decaf coffee and hot water for tea in the lobby. He explained that it was due for a fresh brew and quickly hopped to it. We settled our stuff into the room and then Flora and I headed down to get tea and decaf coffee. David was just finishing up and was making small talk with us. He was friendly and talkative (as an introvert, I always seem to attract these kinds of people, ha!). We had a surface level conversation and went about our evening. In the morning we headed down for hot breakfast. We were greeted with a whole new version of the hotel – fully decked out in Christmas decorations! And David. Wait.This was at a minimum 12-hours from when we checked in and David was still here? Managing the front desk, the entire breakfast spread and somehow he became Santa’s Christmas elf overnight and turned the hotel into a place of Christmas joy?! We said good morning to David and remarked on how he could possibly still be here? And be awake? David said his shift was supposed to end a few hours ago, but the guy on the schedule after him doesn’t usually come in until a couple of hours after his scheduled time. David said he’d called him several times, with no response. I’d like to add that David was the ONLY staff person in this entire hotel. We were exasperated. First at the lack of ethic of the staff person who had a long term record of not showing, then that that guy was even still employed, and lastly exasperated at what an amazing job David was doing under these circumstances. He admitted he’d been working for 16-hours, and that he was a bit tired, but that he did find joy in decorating the hotel overnight. We had a lovely conversation with him about how his wife and child love to camp and they have a goal of camping at all the state parks in the Minnesota. He told us about how they visited the north shore of Minnesota and we talked about how they’d probably love the Porcupine Mountains and the Keweenaw. It was obvious to me that even though David was dealt a crappy hand in the workplace, he took pride in his job, his family, and was living his best life under those circumstances. Flora and I still refer to David, like he’s our buddy. He made our hotel experience a positive one, even though he easily could have slacked on the job, especially after 16-hours.

My point in sharing these stories? It’s inevitable that many of the people we have small interactions with are having challenges in life – big or small. History proves this is a human condition. Life throws you lemons. People in my own circle are navigating life threatening diagnosis, job loss, loss of a home due to natural disaster, caring for a family member who is no longer able to care for themselves and the death of a spouse, just to name a few BIG, life-altering things. What’s amazing is that during these challenges I see these people finding love, making new friends, sharing their experiences with others (which helps them heal and gives insight to others), or rebuilding their life in their new, unexpected reality. 

As a person who enjoys history, I have always been impressed with the resilience of individuals and groups of people. One common thread I see in this is that when people find community, they have hope. Another thread in this is seeing the amazing ability people have to keep moving forward – moving through adversity, for themselves and for their loved ones. No matter how big or small the problem is, no matter your race, religion, political views or anything else that seems to get in the way of people caring for each other – we all have experiences in life that connect us and we all need connection with others. Common threads. We see what we are looking for – so if you’re looking for ways to see that people are bad, different, or separate from yourself – that is what you will see. While our culture and media news cycles make it easy to focus on the negative experience, when people look for the positive they find it.  Kindness and Authenticity are your superpower. How will you use yours?

I recently heard a quote in context of navigating change – “A little bit of something is better than nothing at all.” The smallest effort can make a difference in your day and someone else. Be open to community and be yourself, smile at a stranger, engage in a friendly greeting, make eye contact with someone and thank them – you could make someone’s day – including yours!

Wishing you a good day,

-L 

It’s my birthday – I’m 45! (Holy crap!) What better time to reflect than a birthday?

Every morning we start the day with a family walk, but the other morning I was up early and I decided to go walk out to one of the ponds. I went for this peaceful nature walk ALONE. This is a pretty rare event since I usually have at minimum one two-legged or four-legged family member with me. That morning I enjoyed the quiet and the ability to focus in on what was happening around me, without distraction. It was quite early in the morning and the sun and birds were all waking up. Oh the birds! I sat down, enjoyed the scenery and let my mind relax and wander. A thought that crossed my mind was that if I am lucky to live to the age of 90, I am now at my halfway point. Cue the “over the hill jokes” and terrible gag gifts like a cane with a horn on it, haha! That’s pretty foolish stuff, and I think that this idea of halfway is pretty exciting, not some sort of decline. Regardless of if I’m actually at my halfway point or not, there is so much more in life to experience and so much more to learn about and grow and see change and express joy in.

I wanted to write this blog to share a few pieces of wisdom I’ve learned in my first 45. Well, actually most of these conclusions were realized within the last 7 years (although the experiences in the years before are what informed them!). When we moved to White Sky Woods 7 years ago it was like a life reset. A lot of big things happened before these last 7 years that were full of lessons: college, more college, marriage, career, and family, but then we made the intentional shift to a simpler way of life at White Sky Woods and all the adjustments that came along with that life change gave me a wholly new perspective. Maybe you can relate to all or some of these or are recognizing these perspectives in your life now.

Time is limited and I choose how I spend it wisely.
I consciously choose to spend time with people that fill my cup (rather than drain it). I consciously choose to spend time doing activites that fill my cup…but not too much because too many good things can turn into a big bad thing (cup overflow!!). And after many years of just plain doing too much, I now also remember that I only have one cup to fill (because afterall, I am just one person). Gosh, what was I thinking all those years?!

Plan for the unexpected.
I try to never operate with a schedule so full that an unexpected event will be a tipping point to my time, wellness, or sanity. Or put in another way, every day needs to include some flexibility and downtime, lest I lose my mind and nobody wants that.

Regarding downtime – daily meditation is a life changer.
Simply taking 10 minutes every morning to settle into myself and start the day fresh with a routine created the downshift that my busy mind needed. I still get busy mind. Somedays it’s hard to focus on my meditation at all, but I still practice. According to my app I’ve meditated 1,440 days. That’s almost 4 years of keeping up this habit. Through my meditations I develop self-awareness and a connection to others through observation. I find that it increases my intuition which helps me stick to my values and make intentional choices when life hands me options.

Stop giving to everything and everyone else before myself.
This was probably the most radical thing I’ve ever done – listening to my own needs and meeting them first. And when I did this a crazy thing happened – I got better at giving to the other people and other things and when I do it is meaningful and energizing rather than depleting.

Being busy is not a status symbol.
Plain and simple.

Expect joy and I’ll find it.
We cannot control everything that happens in our lives, but we can always control how we respond to it. The way I choose to respond is a reflection of my attitude and a prediction of my experience.

Up to this point, I believe I have been learning to honor myself as a perfectly imperfect being. I still have a long way to go in this, but no matter what length of life I have…I hope to continue to be on a bettering journey – one that makes a difference for me and the people I encounter through my life. If I am lucky enough to have this point be my halflife, I can’t even begin to imagine what will build upon these lessons and what teachings and I experiences I will learn in my next half.

Cheers to many more years of living life to the fullest as is possible in each moment. ♥

Well, just like that another year has just about breezed by. Winter Solstice is right around the corner and thank goodness – I’m already begging for more daylight! It’s a very busy time of year for many people, but for our family winter signifies rest. In winter we spend the majority of our time with our most valued things – without the distraction of a busy schedule! For us that is family, friends, education, and wellness. We participate in these things all year, but there are more things going on in summer that pull us all different directions and sometimes we can find ourselves a bit too full and distracted away from what matters. Thanks to a tradition we created 3 years ago, we’re rolling into this winter feeling well, relaxed, and open to that which really matters.

Have you heard of high school students who graduate and take a gap year before starting college? A gap year gives these young people time to rest, rejuvenate, focus on health and wellness and oftentimes traveling and experiencing new opportunities is part of this. It’s about growth and positive change to prepare for the next phase of life.

I love this idea of a gap year. How about a gap month? Or even a gap week? A few years I discovered how I could implement a sort of gap into my own life, for our whole family. An area I needed the gap the most was at the end of growing season. Growing season is hectic for any homesteader. The growing, the weeding, the harvesting, the putting up of food, the cleaning up of the garden and in the meantime, other summer projects and projects we need to complete each year before winter. In the far north here we have less season to do things in good weather, such as preparing the woodpile for winter and any other outdoor projects. Any extra days at the end of the growing season that we can work outside, we will. It often feels a like a race to wrap everything up for winter and it happens after our busy season when we are most tired. It used to be stressful, but we’re finding ways to minimize the load so that we aren’t in an end of season frenzy (which in the first years was mostly due to being new at homesteading and also making choices that left us having more responsibility than we could balance in our schedules).

It’s especially hard to turn the busy off when you work where you live and you can find work and projects everywhere you look. There isn’t a switch to turn off busy. Or is there? Several years ago we planned a week long getaway not too far from home to take place after growing season. I clearly remember feeling stressed about the deadline for the work to be done. But really, the work is never done on a homestead, so choices need to be made – insert the gap. We left the homestead, took a week away, and when we came back it was like having a complete reset. Removing ourselves from the homestead for a brief time was enough to distract from that “work is never over and therefore I will overwork” unhealthy mindset and behavior. We had time to decompress, experience new things, and be a little out of our element – and wouldn’t you know, it was invigorating and liberating! We came back reset and ready to work, but also approaching homestead life in a new slower going perspective. We fed our souls in this gap. Homesteading does this for us too, but like anything, too much of a good thing can turn unpleasant because it becomes too much.

After that first trip, it was very obvious to me that I needed to build in a gap. The gap helped me reset so that I could find balance and so that I could honor myself, my family, and the rest we need to thrive. And not just the reset from that one week, but enough of a reset that due to the first gap go around I began to learn the importance of rest during all seasons.

My end of growing season gap now extends beyond a week. With purposeful choices I spent nearly a month reseting. Seeing friends, going new places, finding more time for books and making a nest for myself on the couch. I’m learning that I do best when I dabble in microgaps every day – no matter the season. I’m on my third year of end of gardening season gap and it had been so impactful in my choices in how to experience life that at the end of gardening season I’m not feeling chaotic, stressed, and overwhelmed (don’t get me wrong, this isn’t fully eliminated, some is always inevitable). I prepare for the gap feeling excited for the upcoming time (rather than stressed out about being prepared for it). It’s a little dangling carrot that I look forward to and it brings me joy thinking about it (and even more joy being in the gap).

Gap recommendations: hike a new local place each day, clear out your book stash and deliver them to little free libraries near you (permission to grab a few good books if you see them), take a vacation – it doesn’t need to be far!, meet up with a friend you haven’t seen in a while, spend a week preparing new, unique foods from different cultures, pick a topic to learn something new about and create a cozy space to do your learning. Remember – the gap isn’t about making a project out of something (we don’t need more projects!), it’s about FEEDING YOUR SOUL and giving yourself a RESET.

This year’s gap for me included a visit to new places, reading “breezy” books (you know, the kind that don’t make you think too hard), playing games at the kitchen table with my family, taking longer walks for health, and meeting up with friends I haven’t seen in a while. My heart feels full and my soul rested. I am a better version of myself because of it. A few highlights in the photos below. You’ll see that for me my gap is very nature oriented (Vitamin N – Nature, provides its own dose of soul wellness!).

Is there a time of year you need a gap? What drives your need to have a reset (and could you make any small changes to ease up on this)? What will you do you in your gap (message me, I’d love to hear!)? A gap doesn’t need to be extreme (does anything?!), it just needs to be time doing something different and something that brings joy.

Solstice is just a few days away meaning the longest night is just ahead of us – the darkness in this season is a reminder that there is always light ahead.

Season’s Greetings,

-L