Perspective

I suppose with a lot of what we see in our lives it's all a matter of perspective. Our point of view changes the way we look at circumstances that occur everyday.

How do we then consciously shift our perspective so we feel better about those events that seem to happen beyond our control?

I'm beginning to see it's all about awareness and being present enough in each moment to choose. It's really easy for us to go on auto pilot and react or act out of sheer habit. Just like I almost cropped this photo so it was level with the horizon and then I decided I liked it better this way.

Who said I always had to keep the horizon level anyway? All it takes is a moment of realization that don't have to do things the same as we have before. In any moment we can change our minds and our perspective. 

False Alarm

I wish I had a bigger platform to stand on so I could share what I know in my heart to be true with more people and have them listen. If only for the fact that I want to live in a world where peace, love and happiness prevails. I wrote a post on facebook after midnight last night, technically I wrote it very early this morning, so I'm copying and pasting it here for my blog for today. We all have fears and we all know that love can help us overcome them.

Here's what I wrote:

I’ve been thinking about this since the false alarm that occurred recently. I was inspired to write this after a friend posted a link to a news article regarding an explanation for the major mishap. Regardless of why or how they say it happened, the fact is, that it happened. And since it happened it really made me think about how life can change so drastically in an instant based on even a supposed threat. Just imagine what it was like for all those people who received that message and acted accordingly thinking it was “real”. In that moment it completely changed their lives.

Looking at the bigger picture here I see that what’s more important is that humankind as a species comes to a point where we can eliminate the need for such a warning system altogether. The fact that we still have to worry about getting missiles fired at us is a big problem.
I believe humankind is evolved enough by now to realize that we share a very small planet.

This earth is our home, it does not have boundaries or borders. We are all dependent on the health of the ecosystem in which we live. This system is completely connected in every single way therefore we are all connected too. What we do to one thing or one person or one country effects everything on this one earth that we all depend on for life as we know it. We need each other and we need this entire planet to survive and thrive. We can no longer think about competing against each other, about fighting between countries or firing missiles at one part of the earth without realizing that we are only fighting ourselves.

Ultimately we all want the same thing but the beauty in our diversity is that we have multiple ways to get what we want and what we need. There is more than enough for all of us, we have the technology and the capabilities to solve our biggest problems if we just choose to do so. We all need to choose to do so. I have a dream where it’s one global community here on planet earth. A community that understands the importance of taking care of each other and the earth that sustains us. Humans have the potential for curing diseases, ending poverty, eliminating hunger, celebrating our cultural differences, learning from our mistakes and creating a world that is healthy for every single one of us.

We can live in peace, it is not only possible it is absolutely necessary that we choose to believe in that probability. It’s more obvious than ever that it will take all of us choosing to change our core beliefs. We must believe in the power we have to make different choices because we now realize that we have that choice. We have to choose to spread the word and to work together to make these changes happen.

The time is here for a revolution, we need to act fast before it’s not just a false alarm. We all know what would happen then. Let’s choose to focus on the power that we have to set in motion a new direction for humankind. Not everyone will jump onboard right away but with enough love and compassion it will become clear that we must take whatever steps we can to keep the shift moving toward what we want. 

Deep down we all just want to be happy and healthy, to have time to experience the beauty of this life and solve problems that make the world a better place and make our lives less challenging to survive. Once we realize that we can only be truly happy & healthy when we all are then we will work towards helping others and this earth in order to help ourselves. And right now we all need all the help we can get.

Barre3 Bellingham

Gotta love Bellingham, City of Subdued Excitement  @JoylovesPhotography Winter 2018

I thought I was pretty fit until I went to a Barre3 class today for the first time. I'm participating in the Fairhaven Runners annual beginning of the year Bingo Challenge and one of the squares says "Try an new activity/exercise". Instagram popped up the other day with an ad for Barre3 so I thought why not give it a shot and cross that box off my bingo card. My friend Emily, who was already sore from Snowboarding yesterday, came along too and I can hardly imagine what it felt like for her. I've been lazy the past couple days besides the 30 minutes of hula hooping each day and hiking on Chuckanut Island, oh and hot yoga a few days ago. 

I felt like I was lazy anyway but generally I'm pretty active. This class kicked my ass, my muscles were shaking multiple times trying to keep doing the moves. It was absolutely fun but totally hardcore compared to what I expected. Yoga, pilates and ballet combined to create a type of aerobics on steroids. I will be going back only because they had a 3 for $30 special for newbies otherwise I think I'd prefer my ass kicking from reaching the summit of some mountain peak. However after class I did ask what it would take to become an instructor with some nutty post-workout adrenalin surging through my veins. Anyone who does that for a living deserves serious respect for that kind of dedication to fitness.

I like the studio too, with the floor to ceiling windows on two sides of the square room. I wish I could have a hoop dance studio like that. It was lovely to be able to see the lighting change as the sun set during class. I'm planning on going to Fairhaven Runners Tuesday night all paces group run tomorrow evening and I only hope my legs are going to forgive me for what I put them through today. It was a hell of a workout and I would highly recommend anyone give it a try at least once just to see what I'm talking about.

Pacific Madrone

Magical trees are abundant in the Pacific Northwest. This one lives on Chuckanut Island in the middle of it's own little bay just south of Bellingham. I have kayaked to this island multiple times but today I arrived on one of Hard Drive Marine's landing craft. Mark & I were invited out for a promo photo shoot and the weather was absolutely perfect for it. We love being on the water and have spend most of our lives on or around boats. Neither of us was sure what the plan was exactly but Mark ended up driving one of the smaller boats with a shark on the bow. I was fortunate enough to go for a hike on the island and take photos from up on top of the sandstone sculpted island. 

I have so much on my to-do list but it was definitely worth jumping on this opportunity to get out on the water on one of the warmest winter days we've had so far. I captured some more amazing images and I only hope I have time to edit and do something good with them. I feel very blessed to be living in the Northwest and able to do the things I do.

$20 bill

I'm still disturbed by the fact that I heard something fall out of my pocket this evening and didn't check to see what it was. I'm bothered by my lack of ability to respond properly when this situation occurred. A sweet boy came up holding a $20 bill and told me he found it under the chairs where we were just sitting. I checked my pocket remembering the sound I heard as it hit the ground and recalling how I had stuffed it there the day before after my friend Kay bought a hula hoop from me. I checked my wallet to make sure I hadn't put it away but forgotten. I took the $20 from him and was grateful but honestly I can't remember if I said thank you. I was too busy checking to make sure it was actually mine though I already knew that it was. I was shocked honestly and thrown off my ability to respond. Afterwards I thought maybe I should have just let him keep it as a Thank you for being honest. Either way, I am grateful he returned my lost $20 bill to me. Just another reminder to stay present in the moment, I think my mind was somewhere else or I would have handled it better. At least I know there are still honest people in the world.

Speaking of honesty, who hit that button today? The one that sent out the "False Alarm" to Hawaii? And why did that happen? Can you imagine the nightmare everyone experienced today in those moments between the warning and the recall? It's hard for me to believe that it happened and I feel deeply for all those people who had to experience it directly. Talk about a shocker. I was shocked by some silly little mishap with a $20 bill. I'm just thankful it was a false alarm and a massive tragedy was avoided. I really hope something good comes out of this. I think about how life can change so drastically or end so quickly. Better make the most of the unknown time that we have. I'm sending out lots of love to everyone all over the world right now and praying that we all can see clearly to make the most out of what is most important in our lives.

999

I saw a lot more eyes today so maybe I haven't gotten the full message yet. Eye Wonder...

999 also appeared repeatedly today... in fact it seemed everywhere I looked there was another sequence of those same numbers. Technically I know what it means but I'm not sure what I'm supposed to do with that information.

I guess I'll just keep moving forward with eyes open and hope the path will be revealed along the way.

Yoga was definitely good for me today, I went to Flow Motion out in Ferndale to try the Infrared Hot Yoga class and the heat felt wonderful. I'm doing my best to trust and have faith that if I keep doing the things I love everything will work out.

Symbolic

Life is symbolic, do you notice all of the symbols that make up your reality?

Guidance is all around us if we just pay attention to the often odd ways our questions can get answered. 

I have been seeing eyes recently. Usually it's animals or numbers but lately it has been eyes. First it was a tattooed eye on instagram followed by multiple other encounters that I didn't think too much about. Then I was walking down a trail that I had never been on before and turned around to see this eye. That's when it hit me to look up the symbolism on "the eye" but then I saw eyes all over a woman's running tights too. Why was I noticing these eyes all of the sudden?

When I searched for meaning I found a plethora of information. What struck a chord with me the most was how they are related to honesty and clairvoyance. I have been dealing with learning to trust my intuition above all else and I think this was just confirmation from the universe that I'm on the right track and to keep paying attention. 

Eye's have always been fascinating to me and since I stopped drinking over two years ago my perception has shifted dramatically. The clarity and truth of the the saying that eyes are the window to the soul resonates with me. When I look into another beings eyes I see much more than I could ever put into words. At times it jolts me into an alternate reality where knowing is more powerful than what I can see. I have to do a reality check to make sure I am not dreaming as the sensation is close to feeling lucid in a dream. 

We are so much more than these magical bodies of flesh and bone. I can see it in our eyes. We are spirits in a physical world here for multiple reasons but mostly to expand our awareness of the great mystery that is life while experiencing it from a myriad of perspectives. I think I used to drink so much to keep this extrasensory perception at bay. There's things I know that I don't know how I know and stuff that I see that I have been taught is impossible. How is it I exist in this world of time and space with these feelings I can't seem to explain?

The all-seeing eye, the eye of god, a symbol of great spiritual truth, awakening, divine providence. I know there is something going on, something much greater than what we see and I believe awakening is happening on a grand scale. I'm pretty sure it can't just be happening within me but I know I must play my part for it to happen too. We are on the verge of a breakdown and a breakthrough at the same time, the shift is occurring, people are opening their eyes. Let's let love rule once again on this amazing planet. There is more than enough for all of us but we must take care of each other and this earth.

Marathon

I fully admit I am afraid to commit to doing another full marathon but part of me really wants to do it in spite of my fears. I’ve only done one full one once and I like the idea of doing another but I understand the amount of time and dedication to training it takes. 

There is so much I hope to accomplish this year. I wonder if this fits with my overall plans. I’m scared and excited. I may need to spend some time and write it all out then contemplate the big picture. 26.2 miles seems like a long way to run but then I think of all those ultrarunners out there who do that distance for training runs. How do they fit it all in to their lifestyle?

If they can do it so can I? But then I wonder why... why do we run? Why do I run? I love the benefits of being a runner for sure but why do I want to push myself to go farther? And faster? Why do I always want to do more? Pushing myself to see how much I can accomplish, how far past my comfort zone am I willing to go? There must be a good reason for all of this.

Isn’t that the beauty of being alive?

62 days

Straight. Practicing French and writing a blog post every single day. I almost forgot today. How long do they say it takes to create a new habit?

I keep thinking about things I forgot to add into my Love vs Fear book proposal. I keep crossing tasks off my to do list. Time keeps flying by so fast. 

I realized too today when renewing my ElevenNW domain that I had bought I AylaJoyLove.com. Last time I looked at domain names it was taken, haha, by me. Too funny.

Thats all for now. Goodnight. 

Always Something

If it isn't one thing it's another. There's always something that happens that keeps us on our toes. I guess that's why we are here... to overcome our challenges. To face our fears. To explore how deeply we can love in spite of it all. The endless adventures that keep us going.

It's never boring that's for sure. In fact can be quite frustrating depending on how we look at it. The context and our beliefs have a lot to do with how we perceive things. I want to keep an open mind. I want to believe that no matter how much I don't understand why certain things happen the way they do that they happen for some reason and the best I can do is to make the best out of it all.

When you really think about it, it's pretty amazing to be alive. Thats it. Challenging or not the fact that we are living, breathing consciousness is in itself a miracle of sorts and definitely something to be thankful for. 

Lake Samish

I love to run, most of the time, some days feel better than others. Today was very wet at the GBRC Lake Samish Runs and I was thankful I was only doing one loop around the lake. The 1/2 marathoners started first and us 6.5 milers went 15 minutes later. I was soaked by the time I was done but it was still fun. There was even nice hot greasy bean juice generously provided by Fidalgo coffee all morning. The steamy liquid warmed me right up after the race as I went inside to take more pictures where it was dry. I dream of being faster some day but I was happy enough to just get out and run today. If it weren't for the Greater Bellingham Running Club I probably would have been lazy on this damp winter day.