Always Reaching
Living authentically in the present moment
When I picture the word reaching in my mind the vision is of the raised arm pose (Hasta Uttanasana) in yoga. A full deep stretch full of intention. Feet shoulder width apart, grounded into the earth, arms stretching overhead and then leaning back into an arc, involving your whole torso while staying grounded in place.
Throughout my life, I have tried to take less traveled paths and color outside of the lines. I have come to realize that I am always reaching. It has involved stretching for sky-high intentions around raising our family for much of my adult life. I knew I wanted to give the kids as close as possible to a stay-at-home mom experience while actively participating in our business. This involved numerous things like being the room mom, Girl Scout leader, traveling soccer mom, and 4H mom. In addition B and I decided early on that we wanted to give the kids exposure to a more sustainable lifestyle and allow them to be more free-range, so we bought the farmstead. There we extended ourselves again not only to have chickens, ducks, geese, rabbits, and pigs but also a large garden that the kids could graze from and we could offer a small CSA to 10 families a summer. We wanted to live a simpler more authentic life.
“Authenticity is a collection of choices that we have to make every day. It's about the choice to show up and be real. The choice to be honest. The choice to let our true selves be seen.” Brene Brown
I am happy with the choices that we made to stay true to ourselves and the hopes we had for our family. It was not all rosy times, as with anyone it is a life dotted with ups and downs. It was our rollercoaster, and we just tried to stay in the seat and hold on tighter in anticipation of the curves.
Through COVID we were in a stage of flux, our daughter had valiantly fought mental health challenges for several years and relocated to North Carolina for a treatment program and to go to school. Our son spent his senior year in high school remotely and then started college. And mom and dad?? We began a new kind of stretching, like coming out of a cocoon post-COVID and into a life with adult kids testing their wings.
How can you focus on living authentically? I made this chart based on an article in Positive Psychology.com and I think it is a great illustration.
As the expanse of summer is ahead of us, I find myself focusing on how to be intentionally present. As semi-empty nesters, our days are not filled with managing the chaos of activities outside of work. We can now take our time getting back to deciding what the present moment looks like for us. It feels like taking a deep breath and reaching into a languid Hasta Uttanasana. Do you find yourself stretching, moving towards your next chapter? What does that look like for you?
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