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Yesterday, on a lazy but blissful Friday with my two-year-old son, I made coffee and breakfast and put on a new show while he watched cartoons on his iPad. I am into basically anything on HGTV, so I put on “Mediterranean Life” on Hulu. The show is about families, mainly American, choosing to leave their busy structured lives back in the States and move to a beach town on the coast of the Mediterranean to experience a slower pace.
Sounds delicious right?
As I was soaking in the frequency of this, because I don’t ever watch anything without thinking deeper conceptually, I realized something pretty groundbreaking:
Most people don’t know what brings them joy.
Let’s circle back and break down how I got to this point. In this show, there are a lot of things being revealed, but in summary, almost every single family is changing the way they live their life. They are letting go of routines, of full-time work life, and literally creating a new way of being. Almost every single family said, “I feel so free.”
Let that sink in deeper – These families are FREEING themselves.
Now, of course, I thought, what would my life be like if I had nothing but time in a slow-paced lifestyle?
Because of the amount of time I have spent getting to know myself on a soul level, I was able to quickly answer this question. I knew exactly how my life would look and how I’d fill my schedule, and then I thought, I don’t think many others would be able to.
So I tested it.
I thought of people who perhaps held on tighter to their careers and others who didn’t have many hobbies and asked them this question:
“If you were born rich and didn’t work, who would you be? How would you spend your time?”
It turns out that if you have never explored what truly brings you joy outside things tied to money, worth, or responsibility, you would find it hard to answer this question.
If you’re wondering why your life feels like one giant monotonous routine, or that you have no time for yourself and life just sometimes feels flat, it’s likely because you don’t know yourself.
Or, you’re someone who knows exactly what you’d answer, yet you think because you’re not rich you can’t enjoy the things you list in the answer.
You can have both.
You can be an amazing parent and still light your heart on fire.
You can still be successful in your career and enjoy something else that fills your cup differently.
You can still have a social life and enjoy light-hearted nights out, and still have something that’s just for you.
So this post is a challenge to you, are you doing things that really bring you joy? Like swells up your heart, calms your nervous systems, and makes you believe in miracles joy?
Because you might as well be a zombie walking around if you’re not.
If you don’t know what these things are yet, it’s okay, we get distracted. But now that I’ve got your attention, take the time to find out.
So I am going to ask you the question again, and share my own answer, to inspire you:
“If you were born rich and didn’t work, who would you be? How would you spend your time?”
I live a full life of creation. I have a home close to family, but also another on the coast of Spain. I’d spend my days waking up with no real schedule or agenda, just that I get to ask myself what I’d like to work on that day. I’d paint in the garden, and take pride in the little oasis I made for myself.
I grow my own herbs and maybe some peppers, nothing too complex. I’d cook new meals with fresh ingredients and spend quality time with my son. I’d learn new instruments, maybe a traditional dance style, and I’d write my heart out. Books, articles, short stories, whatever pours out of me that day. I’d teach writing workshops and collaborate and connect with other writers, and find other ways to create with my hands, like pottery and knitting. My joy is in creation.
If you’re having trouble tapping into the frequency of this, try this mantra:
I am ready to stop ignoring the beat of my own heart
I am prepared to listen to its song
I surrender to its wants and desires
I am responding to my clarion call
