A Little Slower, A Little Sweeter.

Lately I’ve been thinking about who I want to love, and how I want to love, and why I want to love the way I want to love, and what I need to learn to love that way, and who I need to become to be the kind of love I want to be, and it all comes down to a simple feeling that we all should learn how to delight in: savoring.

This past Sunday, I took a spontaneous road trip to see the Imperial Sand Dunes. The place is surreal and absolutely breathtaking. You are transported into another world that feels so out of place especially being 2.5 hrs east of charming San Diego. Not many people know about this vast and magical place so very few people were there when I went. The grains of sand are so fine to the touch that you actually become comforted by the way your feet and hands sink in gently. The winds were strong and blew the sand everywhere, but a moment of calm came by surprise, and I took the chance to kneel and let my fingers graze the sand as I closed my eyes to the warm kiss of the sun.

I thought, here I am, in the presence of everything and nothing, and you still mesmerize me. There was something divine about being there. Something so calming yet powerful enough to remind me how close all of life’s beautiful wonders really are– if we only took the moment to savor what is around us. I opened my eyes to see the sinuous trail of ripples left by the winds and felt a sudden rush of awe and surrender. When you let things pass through you and you feel it in all of its rawness and truth, sometimes you are given a beautiful surprise that moves you beyond words. Savoring does this to you.

Savoring the moment our eyes grow mad with curiosity and intrigue for something or someone that ignites our soul. Savoring the places we travel to, however near or far, and the people we meet along the way–they all teach and give us a little taste of life different than ours. Savoring the hours we have with our lovers, no matter how short-lived the romance and intensity could be, and allowing every word and touch that spills out of you to be wholesome and true to your hearts at that very moment. Savoring the times we find ourselves in the darkness in search of finding beauty in unlikely places. Savoring the passing conversations we have with strangers or even distant family members and friends, and never letting an opportunity to connect and share love sincerely with one another.

I thought about this the other day as I was expressing my perspective on heartbreak and personal growth with a friend, that love is so simple and dating or “courting” would be so much easier if we knew how to savor each other, rather than pushing ourselves too soon and too quickly with someone (or anything for that matter) to fall in love with. I am guilty, though, for taking delight in the moment and forgetting to taste things slowly sometimes. In these moments, I find myself pausing and asking two questions:

Will this be the only chance we’ll ever feel this way? 

Do we both recognize in each other, and in ourselves, the gratitude and bittersweet truth of the present? 

It’s a difficult balance to savor something you know is so exquisite and memorable to have right away.

We are so consumed by instant gratification in our lives, that it is becoming a natural part of ourselves we are beginning to be blind–and ultimately–disabled by in our growth and love. “I wish I had taken it slower” is something we’ve all said to ourselves at one point. “I wish I spent more time with the people who loved and cared about me and said what I felt” is a very familiar and common thing we hear now. When you are learning how to savor, learn how to savor in the magic of manifesting your true self and the beautiful complexities of your being. Many of my friends are “waking up” from their slumber and are now discovering that there is more to life than what they’ve known and that there is more to the being we thought we were.

You have to understand, sweet darling, that even though we can be one big paradox, our complexities are what make growing and understanding worth the journey to experience and to savor all of the calm moments and intensities of the here and now, wherever you are in your life, is what others need to be surrounded and inspired by. To deepen relationships, with yourself and others, you must be willing to open yourself up. Vulnerability is the key to emotional bonding, without which relationships tend to feel superficial and meaningless, and knowing how to savor an experience is how we create more abundance and gratitude in our lives and others. Because how else could we savor in this moment together if we didn’t share our vulnerabilities and true selves with one another?

So tomorrow, when you eat all of that delicious food and drink a luscious and smooth blend of red wine in the company of good friends, new friends, family and new family, take a moment to savor life and all the different cups it gives you: the places, the people, the moments, the fear, the confusion, the short-lived romances, the heartbreaking romances, the family we wish to be closer with, the friends we wish to reconnect with, the fascinating wonders your mind is drawn to, the ache from laughter, the what-ifs and why-nots that compel your creativity, and the moments that make your heart stop and feel time slow down. And when these seconds grab you, feel:

This. Savor this. Savor me. Savor you. Savor the here and now that we are together in this shared experience. 

Remember that.

You will always remember the places and people and experiences that have made you feel something profound. And all it takes to grow a little better every day, is to savor the people who are here in your life and everything that comes and goes your way just a little slower, a little sweeter, darling.

 

Yours,

N

The Crazy Ones: Why Love is an Art of Being

Photo by: Stephanie Dandan, Infinite Satori

I’ve been told plenty of times that I’m crazy.

“You’re crazy…”

“..for leaving a beautiful city and a comfortable  job at the hottest tech start-up, for being a woman and travelling alone to different countries and sleeping on trains and couches, for going to a private school that put you $60K in debt, for breaking my heart because you’ll never meet anyone who will love you like I do, for saying what you said to him–‘do you know who he is?’, for not taking that job because you would have been set for life, for not listening to what’s been done before…”

I realize I could continue that list for pages, but the truth is, the criticism will never end. I will always have people telling me why they think I’m crazy, but here’s the thing–I already knew that I was crazy and will likely stay that way for the rest of my life.

Because if crazy means that I get to follow my heart and create my life the way that I want, then I’d rather be a crazy human being who lives the madness of  love than a prisoner of fear and societal construction.

Ever since I left San Francisco, I’ve been on a continual quest to create my own destiny and life without compromising my true purpose in life. I moved to Los Angeles thinking I’d be a kick-ass Producer and could start over in the Entertainment industry, but I got sucked into the comfy lifestyle of a monthly salary and the hopes of someday “making enough to quit my job and be a writer”. I worked 10- to 15-hour days and would always come home feeling completely brain fried, like a zombie on auto-pilot, only feeding myself with dinner and catching up on the latest in my news feed. I would crave for just a little bit of time to write my novel and short stories, sometimes waking up at 4:30am to court my muse until I had to put her back in the cage and put on my “professional” face for the next 15 hours.

Living that way, ate away my smile and my soul, and I soon began to feel like a prisoner. It only took an observation of the people and environment I was in to help me realize, that there’s not enough people out there who stand up for their dreams and truly follow their heart. I smiled like a mad scientist on the brink of a discovery thinking, “Let’s see what happens if I leave and take an alternate path.”  I left that job, the environment, and the construction of a path that was laid out for me.

I wanted to build my own path in whatever direction I wanted with whatever material I created or was given. I was going to struggle, but at least I’ll know that the path was built with my own self-love, values, blood, sweat, and tears. 

Recently, I’ve felt a kind of shift happening right now that most people don’t see. A lot of my peers seem to feel lost with themselves or trapped on a path they feel they can’t get off of. They seek a kind of understanding with themselves, and an approval or the permission to follow their heart and curiosities. We’ve spent years and years and years telling our kids and ourselves that success and happiness come from material stability and security. That without a comfortable job that gives you benefits (which is nice) and a nice 401k, you’re pretty much f*cked. What they have long forgotten though, is the very trait that has brought us into becoming who we are as beings: evolution.

We forget that we are evolutionary beings who are capable of accessing the power of our intuition and using it to create things from our heart and soul. We spend too much of our lives following the rules and doing what is necessary to climb up a ladder that isn’t our own, but someone else’s. For those who are comfortable with that kind of mentality and lifestyle, I don’t hate you or disregard what you choose for your life, I only hope to spark a meditation for those who feel they don’t fit in with that.

If we continue to follow what’s been done and continue to quantify success and happiness on material stability, how will we ever evolve into better beings? I meet a lot of cynics and pessimists who tell me I’m not being realistic, but the truth is, reality needs to evolve or we will never be any better than what we were and are, yesterday or today. You have to continuously break the mold, the tradition, and the preconceived structures that society imposes on us.

BE the CREATOR that you are. The ARTIST that you FEEL. The MUSICIAN that HEALS. The ENGINEER that IMPROVES to bring basic human needs. The SCIENTIST that EXPLORES new territories. The ENTREPRENEUR that UPLIFTS us out of of the poverty mentality.

Start listening to the inner voices of your heart and soul. They are the only tools you need to create your life the way you want.

Creating yourself and bringing into fruition the passions, dreams, and love that you desire are a lot like art. You have an idea of what you want to create and an overall image you wish for others to see, but ultimately, creation is all about the process. The colors you will use will change. The strokes and patterns will shift in different directions according to the orders of your heart, and you’ll pour hours and hours of tears and joy over quick moments of completion and mistake. And when you feel like the piece is complete, you’ll realize that a version of yourself has been satisfied and that the art is never really complete–that it continuously evolves from itself.

We are resilient creatures who have lived through unimaginable circumstances, but in order to evolve as a human being in our personal lives, or our career endeavors or spiritual creations, we have to welcome all love, pain and joy, and knowing when to let go of the people and places that don’t align with your heart values or push your present forward.

You have to believe in what you love, create with whatever materials and resources you have, and go at whatever pace you choose fits best. YOU are your own designer, artist, and creator.

While you are living, follow your heart and soul. Be crazy enough to think you might just be onto something–a discovery and journey that most people fear of taking. Be different versions of yourself all the time. Create like a mad artist, evolving and using different colors, tools and mediums to express your truest and highest self. My friend and soul-sister, Low Leaf, said it best when she encountered criticism for her music and being,

“I refuse to feel ashamed for being an artist who doesn’t get as much shine as one would quantify as success. True wealth cannot be bought…us creators, artists, and healers… we know something, that they don’t…. something that they’ve long forgotten… n we can’t talk about it.. we just be about it….”.

LOVE yourself. LOVE your ART. LOVE your BEING.

To quote Steve Jobs:

 

 

 

Because the ones that are remembered the most are the crazy ones. Because the crazy ones are the leaders of our human evolution. They are fearless in their growth and compassionate with their love.

THE WORLD NEEDS MORE PEOPLE WHO FOLLOW THEIR HEARTS and CREATE WITH THEIR SOUL.

What are you waiting for?

Do it for the love of your passions.

 

Yours,

Noemi