Today’s Task: Prioritize YOU
You didn’t think I forgot about the challenge, did you? No. In fact, I’ve been taking the last several days to prioritize rest, fitness, and family. I’ve decided that through the end of the challenge, I’ll be taking weekends off from writing, as it’s counterproductive to the values and ethos behind this blog to force myself to work during a time that really should be about relaxing and play.
This week I’ll admit I’m feeling a lot of feels. Being at home again in Kansas always has this way of reminding me of what it’s like to be held – not by a particular person, but by a place.
It’s funny how the familiarity of a street or neighborhood can make it feel effortless to navigate, make plans, and such. Not having to put in the directions on my phone before pulling out of the driveway brings a kind of lightness that no other place I’ve lived or visited has allowed.
I also recognize that because I’ve moved so often since leaving Kansas, I’ve never given myself the opportunity to memorize things in the same way. Living in Greater Minnesota, there’s so many back roads you can get lost in, and I’ve never kept track of them very well. I have a few routes I know will generally take me from one town to another, but it still lacks something that I feel when I’m here in Lawrence.
I had the great fortune to visit my old supervisors, with Pendleton’s Country Market today, and was so pleasantly surprised to find that they’ve started a podcast, are six months in, and already have 300 consistent subscribers. I’m about 12 months in and only have one episode published. This is a serious problem. Or maybe things were just meant to take that long. I don’t know.
But it’s fun to drive back to a place that I spent so many spring, summer, and fall days and be reminded of good times in the field and in the market. The chaos of customers and harvest and tractors. It’s also fun to remind myself of conversations with co-workers about what it would look like if I had the money to purchase it from them when they retired. I laugh at the questions that they asked me about my own farming aspirations and where I imagine that taking place. It suddenly became clear when they said “You know, there’s a great place in Douglas County that might be a good fit” where they were going with the questions.
“La vida nos lleva donde pertenecemos” is something that a good friend of mine always says. It’s a reminder that we don’t have to have control. That the more we lean into curiosity and fun and just enjoy the ride, the more likely it is that even when doors close we’ll still be enjoying every moment. It’s become one of my favorite sayings to keep coming back to as a reminder that I don’t have to know what’s coming next. And that as much as there’s truth in ‘those who fail to plan, plan to fail’, there’s also truth in co-creation and allowing spirit to guide you where you belong.
In reviewing a colleague’s fellowship presentation script today, I was reminded that as we shift our internal reality, our external environment similarly changes. What does that mean for me today, in this moment? That my parents are the people who I want them to be. I can choose what to remember about my childhood, what to let go of, what to celebrate, and what to navigate in the current day with grace, patience, and compassion.
They’ll still love me, no matter how I choose to respond. And that’s not something I always thought was true. I think there was always a fear that if I disappointed them or went down a path that was incongruent with their vision for me, that I would lose their support forever. Sometimes to remind myself of this lie, I even force myself to get out of my comfort zone and ask “If my parents weren’t alive, would that change the way I make a decision about this?” It can help me to frame things from a different perspective – one as an independently operating woman as opposed to ‘my parents’ daughter’.
Regardless of how you choose to frame your present or your future, remember that you are only limited to your imagination. To stimulate some additional brainstorming on your end, I’ll share the manifestation list I drafted on my drive on Sunday:
Manifestations this week:
- Manicure and pedicure
- 6K
Manifestations in the next 3 to 6 months:
- A contract for work to build an e-book
- Co-working space in Melbourne
- A dance partner and classes in Melbourne
- A family photoshoot
- The financial resources to join my sister’s gym
- Photo shoot in India
- Financial resources and a buddy to get a tattoo
- A buyer for my car
I also started brainstorming some items related to Mezclada:
Potential online offerings to create:
- Grant writing 101 for farmers
- Financial literacy for small farm businesses
- Building out your financial resources, wish list and package
- Leveraging AI for grant writing
- Year-round income for your small farm business – Best practices and inspiration
Keep up the great work, and taking small strides in the right direction. You got this. 50% of the way there!
