personal-growth – SUNBEAM ACRES

Living in the Pause

August 25, 2026 pammunkholm

“The music is not in the notes, but in the silence between.”
—often attributed to Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart

I’ve been thinking about the pause. The spaces between the things we think make a life important.

We live in a culture obsessed with the notes.

The promotion.
The house.
The vacay.
The degree.
The business.
The six-figure salary.
The awards.
The followers.
The accomplishments we can put on a résumé.

More. More. More.

More recognition.
More experiences.
More things.

These things absolutely have their place and purpose. But somewhere along the way, we started measuring ourselves and others by those notes. What if, hear me out, the music is actually in the silence between? In the pause.

A forest is never truly silent. There is wind moving through the branches, birds calling, insects buzzing, leaves rustling, footsteps on the trail.

But there are pauses between the sounds. If you notice them, those pauses make you notice the sounds that much more.

Maybe life works the same way. Maybe the pause isn’t empty. Maybe it is where we hear what we would otherwise miss.

I don’t have the wealth or notoriety or conventional accomplishments that can make a life look impressive from the outside.

And often, I’ll admit, I struggle with that.

I want to work. I want to contribute. I want to be useful. I want to afford to live. I want nice things. I want to go fun places.

I want to get groceries without having to figure out which ones I can afford to put back (calculus- level grocery shopping.)

I want to say yes to things without factoring in the 2-3 business days of recovery. I don’t want to be a burden on others.

And when I look around and see everyone else accomplishing things, building careers, travelling, buying houses, starting businesses and living their lives, comparison can sneak in.

And comparison has never once left me somewhere good. It usually leaves me grieving the life I thought I was “supposed to have.”

Maybe I’m not missing the music. Maybe I’m living in the pause.

That reoccurring thought has changed some neural pathways in my brain.

Billy Graham once said, “You’ve never seen a hearse with a U-Haul behind it.”

We don’t take our houses. We don’t take our bank accounts. We don’t take our titles. We don’t take the things we’ve accumulated. We don’t even take our accomplishments.

People sometimes leave a legacy through museums, buildings, scholarships, roads and schools named after them. (And there is nothing wrong with that.)

But I’ve started asking myself a different question:

What if the most important legacy isn’t what has my name on it?

What if it’s who I became while I was here? And whose name I have written on my heart at the end of it all?

What if the real question isn’t, “What did you accomplish?”

But:

“Who did you become?”

Did I become kinder? More compassionate? More patient? More generous? More loving?

And, if you believe as I do, “Do you pause to recognize this is who you have become with God’s help?”

That changes the way I look at my days.

I believe the only things I ultimately get to take with me when I leave this life are my relationships with the people I love and what I have become in the process of living it.

So if this is the pause, I don’t want to waste it.

I want to live here intentionally.

Interruptible-y.

I’ve spent a lot of my life focusing on productivity.

What’s next? What needs to get done? What am I accomplishing? How do I fit everything in?

But what happens when I build my life so tightly around my plans that there is no room for interruption?

What if the interruption is the point?

I still have a loose outline for each day. Things I want to accomplish.

But I want to be interruptible. I want to leave room for God.

For people. For a conversation. For a need. For beauty. For a compassionate detour.

What does living in the pause look like for me?

I’ve started organizing my life around four areas.

Not perfectly.

But intentionally.

1. Spiritual growth

I start with God. I pause to pray to speak to Him. Then I read scripture to listen.

Sometimes I’ll sit in the sunshine while I pray. There’s something about feeling the warmth of the sun on my face, noticing the light, and remembering that I’m part of something much bigger than whatever is happening inside my own head. Or my body.

Soulucence
A coined spiritual and artistic term meaning the radiant, unarmored light of your true soul, shining to the world.

I try to carry that awareness with me through the day. That light. That connection.

The reminder that my life has a purpose beyond what I can accomplish.

Because if I spend all my energy trying to build a life that looks successful but neglect the person I’m becoming, I’ve missed the point.

I don’t have to earn my worth by being useful.

I can simply be His.

And from that place, I can become more interruptible. More available. More attentive.

More willing to notice what He might be putting in front of me.

2. Physical health

My body gets a significant portion of my attention these days.

I go to the gym three days a week. I have a routine for each visit.

I generally walk there, which means going to the gym can consume a surprisingly large portion of my day.

Not much keeps me home.

Ribs out? Still going.

Bone structure held together by ligaments there more for decoration than integrity? Still going.

Bad weather? Still going.

The people who were supposed to meet me there cancel? Still going.

Apparently I have become that person.

Until. Ice. Then I stay home.

I also spend time trying to support my body in other ways. Light therapy, castor packs, and other things that have become part of my detox routine.

I’m working toward an anti-inflammatory way of eating. Let’s just say this is a work in progress.

I can make a beautiful, healthy breakfast and then my good intentions meet a snack.

My next goal is finding healthy lunches I actually enjoy and snacks that don’t make my inner snack gremlin revolt.

I’m also working on drinking more water. If you have a solution for this other than “just drink more water 🙄,” I’m listening 👂.

I make homemade body products and cleaning products too. One day a week is usually devoted to refilling whatever is running low.

It’s not glamorous. But it is part of caring for the body I’ve been given. And I’m learning that caring for my physical health isn’t about forcing my body to perform like it used to.

It’s about listening to it. Respecting it. Working with it. And sometimes, that means adjusting the plan.

Which brings me back to:

Being Interruptible.

A healthy life isn’t necessarily a perfectly executed schedule. Sometimes it’s knowing when the schedule needs to change.

3. Intellectual and creative growth

“Live as if you were to die tomorrow. Learn as if you were to live forever.”

— often attributed to Mahatma Gandhi

A mind is a terrible thing to waste.

I don’t want to stop learning just because my life doesn’t look the way I once imagined it would.

So I read. I listen to books and podcasts. Not mindless gibber-jabber. I want to learn things. Understand things. Try things.

I’m interested in how people work, how the brain works, how the body works, how nature affects us, how faith shapes us, how we can live better.

And then I try to do something with what I’m learning. I recognize it’s about more than just taking in. Our output of that knowledge benefits us and others.

I write. I blog. I create. I try new skills. I play. I experiment. I make room for curiosity.

And I’m trying to bring meditation back into my routine this fall. That one has fallen somewhat spectacularly off the summer wagon schedule.

Maybe summer isn’t the season for stillness for me. Maybe it’s the season for gathering enough light to carry me into the winter pause.

Living in the pause doesn’t mean creating another impossible list of things I must accomplish in time.

It means paying attention and following what works for the day. Or pursuing a completely unplanned thought.

Such as taking a compassionate detour.

Which brings me to the fourth part.

4. Relationships

This might be the most important one.

I start my day with a loose outline.

But I try to remain interruptible.

If a friend needs to talk, I want to have room for that.

If someone needs support I can give, I want to be available.

If my husband and I have an opportunity to go for a walk or grab a treat, I don’t want to be so committed to my schedule that I miss it.

We’ve had some top tier walks this season.

I intentionally build visits with friends into my week. Sometimes we go for a walk. Lay on the beach. Or we just sit and talk.

Some people leave me energized. Some people deplete my energy.

I’m learning to recognize the difference, being mindful without judging either one. Because relationships are not an optional extra to a healthy life. They are part of a healthy life.

I believe that the people I love are part of what I take with me into eternity, so investing in those relationships isn’t time away from my purpose.

It is part of my purpose.

Being interruptible means leaving enough room in my life for another human being to matter.

I still have days when I desperately want the notes.

I want the accomplishments. I want the freedom. I want to contribute more. I want to travel more. I want to buy something without having to calculate whether it’s practical.

I want a life that feels bigger sometimes.

But I don’t want wanting them to blind me to the life I’m already living.

The pause isn’t wasted time.

I used to think of the spaces between accomplishments as empty.

Waiting. Stuck. Behind.

I’m starting to see them differently.

Maybe this is where the music is. Where I learn to listen to God. Where I learn what matters. Where I become.

And maybe the pause isn’t the part of my life that happens while I’m waiting to get back to the real thing.

Maybe this is the real thing.

So I’m going to try to live here. In the pause.

To pray. To learn. To care for my body. To create. To laugh. To love my people. To take compassionate detours. To notice the rain. To sit in the sunshine. To walk through the forest.

And to become the kind of person I hope to be when all the notes have finally ended.

Because perhaps the music was never in the accomplishments.

Perhaps it was always in the silence between them.

And maybe that’s one of the reasons I keep coming back to the forest.

Forest therapy teaches that you don’t have to force a forest to perform for you. You simply enter it, slow down, notice what is already there, and become receptive to what you might otherwise miss.

The wind between the trees. The birdsong between the sounds. The light between the branches. The breath between one moment and the next.

The pause. I’m due for another sit beside the rushing water beneath the tall trees. A lay down under clear, bright, starry skies.

So here’s a question for you:

What would change in your life if you stopped seeing the pause as wasted time and started asking what it might be teaching you?

Be led by joy. It’s the whole point.

-Mike Dooley

You Are a Success Story

May 26, 2026May 26, 2026 pammunkholm

My physiotherapist, “J,” has been with me through it all.

She has seen me on some of my best days over the past 15 years of working with her.

The day I told her I was finally pregnant with the baby I had tried nearly a decade to conceive.
The day I said, “I’m running again.” After years of pain making even the thought of it feel impossible. My body has approached physical activity like a suspicious cat approaches a cucumber in the past.
She heard me process the long, exhausting teenage years of push and pull with my oldest child. And then my second. Followed by my third. The painful years that felt like emotional whiplash and then she celebrated with me when they all graduated. She understood firmly the mentality of, We did it! On each occasion.
She walked alongside me through buying and selling homes.
When Kenzie got engaged. Jamie transitioned. Riley moved in with his girlfriend.
When all three times I found out I was going to be a grandma, she was one of the first people to know.
When I started a forest therapy business and dared to believe healing could become something I offered others.

She has witnessed joy. Growth. Milestones.

We have laughed together as I walked around in a body that behaved like it’s been assembled from spare parts with vague instructions and one missing screw.

Proof that life can still bloom in hard soil.

And she has also sat with me on some of my worst days.

The day I fell off a boat and we both knew recovery would not be quick.
The years I fought to be taken seriously by medical professionals before finally getting the MRI that revealed my bone spur. Disappointing specialist appointments. Medical gaslighting.
Family job losses.
Kids in car crashes.
The miscarriage of the baby I had fought so hard to conceive. She cried with me that day. And the day I told her I was going ahead with the hysterectomy that closed that door entirely. We were so hopeful that would help my overall health.
Surgeries that did not go well.
The passing of dear friends.
The painful decision to close my business and then Brent’s and eventually to stop working.
Leaving the farm and grieving all that move represented. She understood, she’s a farm girl.
And the appointment Christmas Eve where she examined me and realized something was deeply wrong. I had almost no muscle mass. I was so weak and felt so broken, useless, a waste of skin.

I could write pages about what J and I have discussed over the years. At some point, she became more than someone treating my body. She became someone quietly witnessing my life story unfold.

The size of my kids when I started seeing J

And then one ordinary appointment changed how I saw myself.

It started like any other. I explained where the pain was. What had shifted in my workouts. What stress was doing to my body. What daily life had looked like since we last met.

She examined me, worked through familiar areas of tension, and after a moment of silence she said something I think applies to all my chronic comrades:

“You’re a success story. Do you know that?”

My first instinct is always to deflect a compliment.

I think you have me confused with someone whose joints aren’t held together by determination and prayer alone.

But it felt true. It felt like the most true diagnosis I’d ever been given.

She continued, (and I want you to see yourself in this,)

When you look at where you’ve been on your lowest days and where you are now. This is a success story.

You could have closed the doors on life. Stayed in bed. Turned inward. Leaned into fear of the future. You could choose to live frustrated and depressed. White-knuckling your way through existence.

But instead, you keep rebuilding. You keep getting stronger. No matter what knocks you down, you come back.

Like one of those punching balloons from childhood. The ones you smack into the floor and somehow they pop right back up, mildly annoying and aggressively optimistic.

I have a core memory of my cousin’s party. They had one of those balloons in the backyard. As I played with it I wondered what was inside that made it keep popping up.

If resilience had a mascot, I might nominate a half-inflated punching balloon and a woman with heating pads.

J was right though. That’s me. That’s you.

What is it that’s inside us that keeps us popping up, time after time?

Not graceful. Not elegant. Occasionally leaking air. But still coming back up.

Again. And again. And again.

J encouraged me to start writing it down. My story. To let others read it. And that is where this blog began.

A success story, heavily disguised as a challenging life story.

Chronic Pain Does Not Stay in One Box

If you live with chronic pain, you understand this. Pain does not politely stay in your shoulder. Or your spine. Or your hips. Or your joints.

It leaks. It spreads.

It enters your sleep, your patience, your relationships, your finances, your confidence, your work, your parenting, and your identity.

It is never just physical.

The dis-ease spreads just like disease. Not because we are weak. But because pain is invasive.

Scars are not signs of weakness, they are signs of survival.

Yet many people living with chronic pain quietly continue. They raise children. Show up to work. Try to exercise. Cook supper. Pay bills. Care for aging parents. Smile through appointments (and cry after.) Fold laundry while wondering why their body feels like it was assembled by a distracted Ikea employee.

And still… they continue.

That is not failure. That is resilience. That is success.

Rock bottom became the solid foundation on which I rebuilt my life.

–JK Rowling

The Exhaustion of Not Being Believed

One of the hardest parts of chronic pain is not always the pain itself. Sometimes it is the disbelief. Unfortunately, this can include close family members. Friends. Employers.

And yes, medical professionals.

When symptoms are invisible, people often assume they are exaggerated. If scans are unclear, they question your tolerance. If you “look fine,” they assume you must be fine.

And so many of us become defenders. Explainers. Evidence gatherers.

Trying desperately to prove that our pain is real. Trying to earn validation. Trying to convince others that suffering exists even when they cannot see it.

But constant defense is exhausting.

As Dallin H. Oaks said:

When attacked by error, truth is better served by silence than by a bad argument.

That quote hit me.

We do not need to defend ourselves from every misunderstanding. Not every person deserves access to our explanations. Not every accusation needs a rebuttal. Not every skeptical glance deserves our emotional energy.

There is a time to inform. And there is a time to walk away.

Never wrestle with pigs. You both get dirty and the pig likes it.

–George Bernard Shaw

Silence is not surrender. Sometimes silence is strength. Sometimes it is peace. Sometimes it is refusing to spend precious energy proving your pain to people committed to misunderstanding it.

Do not explain. Your friends do not need it, and your enemies will not believe you.

–Elbert Hubbard

You Are a Success Story Too

If you live with chronic pain and still carry on…

You are a success story.

If you’ve had to explain your pain as a weird hip or angry neck. Here is your medal in interpretive medicine 🏅…

And you are a success story.

If, like my friend described it, you have been blindsided at a medical appointment and you keep seeking your answers…

You are a success story.

If you got out of bed today and every day, despite exhaustion…

You are a success story.

If you parent through pain…

You are a success story.

If you grieve what your body once was while still learning to care for the body you have now…

You are a success story.

If you feel misunderstood. Lesser. Frustrated. Invisible. You are still a success story.

Do not let anyone take that from you.

You never know how strong you are until being strong is your only choice.

–Bob Marley

A Forest Therapy Practice: Seeing Yourself in the Landscape

One of the most grounding practices I return to comes from forest therapy.

Take a small mirror with you into nature.

Stand among trees.

Or beneath open sky.

Hold the mirror so your reflection appears framed by branches, clouds, leaves, or light.

Look at yourself. Really look. See your face inside the larger landscape. Notice how you are not separate from nature. You belong here too.

Then ask yourself:

Where was I a year ago?

What have I survived?

How far have I come?

What strength still exists in me?

Appreciate where you are now. Not because healing is complete. But because progress deserves to be witnessed. And because you still have what it takes to continue.

Rivers don’t apologize for moving slowly at some points on their path.

Seasons do not shame themselves for resting.

Maybe we shouldn’t either.

My Success Story Is Still Being Written

I used to think success had to look polished. Strong. Linear. Easy to explain. Now I know better.

Sometimes success looks like rebuilding muscle. Sometimes it looks like surviving grief. Sometimes it looks like asking for help. Sometimes it looks like walking instead of running. Sometimes it looks like closing one chapter when life forces your hand. Sometimes it looks like bouncing back up like an emotionally exhausted inflatable clown with stubborn determination.

I have bounced back like a plastic bag caught in a prairie wind.

Messy. Crooked. Still rising. Still trying.

And maybe that is enough.

Actually

Maybe that is extraordinary.

You are a success story.

If pain has tried to rewrite your life and you still continue…

🫵 You are a success story.

And don’t you forget it. 😉

Harnessing Positive Energy: Boost Your Vibration Daily

June 17, 2025 pammunkholm

Outside the open window, the morning air is all awash with angels.

-Richard Wilbur

I am loving the sunshine today! It makes me so happy. Welcome to thighs- sticking- to- plastic- chair weather!

Today we are talking energy. When I talk about energy. The most common questions are, do you mean how much energy we have in a day? The energy in a space? Energy from the earth? The answer is Yes! It all goes together.

Energy: The Bright, The Dark, and The Dreadful

Everything has an energy to it. People have energy. You can tell when you sit beside someone that has a bad energy. Or a bright sparkly energy. Before they even speak.

Animals have energy. I understand that all dogs have good energy. Unless they take on the energy of their negative- energy owner. I can’t say the same about cats.

Even plants and nature itself hold an energy. It is positive flowing energy. That’s why we feel so good when we are in a forest. We can feel the good energy all around us. It permeates our bodies.

What to Expect—And What Might Just Surprise You!

Today I will be exploring why seeking to be a positive energy is so important. How to tell if you are stuck in a negative energy. Energy drainers, that we want to avoid, when possible. And energy givers. Those things we want to take in profusely. What does a healthy, positive energy look like? What do those people need to watch out for? We will discuss ways those with a negative energy can turn that around. Finally we will talk about how the forest helps and affirmations to protect your energy.

In essence, learn how to heal your energy, protect your energy, understand your energy. Plus, learn how to schedule your most relaxing hour. To bring your energy back up and regulate your nervous system. Stick around.

Your Positive Energy Is the Only Currency That Won’t Get You Audited!

Your positive energy is your greatest currency. Your family, your work buddies, your friends. They all seek it. Because good energy is contagious. Have you ever been around someone with infectious energy? You can’t help but feel a little lifted after being around them.

We all know the 11th commandment, thou shalt not let low- vibin- sketchy energy penetrate thine aura. Learn how to protect your energy. Fiercely. It is not selfish to do so; it is- self preservation.

The energy we seek to emit is embodied in the Bulgarian word, Ailyak. Based on the definition by theintrepidguide.com, it translates to, “The subtle art of doing everything calmly and without rushing, whilst enjoying the experience and life in general.”

Signs You’re Trapped in a Cycle of Negativity

Let’s talk about signs of being stuck in a negative energy. These are some of the signs. You will sense that you are struggling to set and achieve goals. That underlying sense of anger and frustration always being right under the surface. Having a general dislike of people. More than usual. One may have a sense of impending doom. Contention seems to follow you. A lack of mental and physical energy. When you do sleep it is anything but restful. Communication with others is difficult. Accessing concentration is a struggle.

This is an odd person for me to reference. But Brent follows HeavyD Sparks religiously. And we were listening to an older podcast of his the other day. I can’t find the actual quote but he was talking about negative feedback. When you hold two live microphones together you get a high pitch squeal. It will grow and grow until you take them apart. The same goes for a person with negative energy. When they enter a space, the energy shifts. And if they have another “live” negative energy seeker. The squeal gets louder and louder until we step away. I am not speaking only of people in this energy having an argument. That is one example. But more likely we get two negative energies together and they play off each other. They can begin by being upset with a cause or a circumstance. By the end of the conversation, that cause or circumstance is the scum of the earth! How dare they?

Where focus goes, energy flows.

You will have the opportunity to practice keeping your energy high and positive when negative energy enters your space. It is not easy. Keep in mind. You have an affect on those in your space for good or bad. Depending on your response.

What are some other things that are draining your energy? Do any of these apply to you?

overthinking
social media
gossiping
resentment
dehydration
clutter
poor sleep habits
negativity
skipping breaks
complaining
one- sided relationships
people pleasing
unclear boundaries
negative self talk
stress
worry

Such a jumbled mix of things. But they all, at times, have taken me to a place of anger or upset. If used inappropriately or as a form of avoidance these are all on my Do Not or at least Use Cautiously list. Overall, just a general violation of my own rhythm is what results.

Discovering Your Inner Sunshine: A Trove of Positive Energy

Now let’s flip it around and look for those things that feed us energy. The right things for us will always give us energy. That’s how we know they are good.

nature
fresh air
friends and family
inspiring music
hydration
movement
sun on my skin
whole foods
good sleep
creativity
dancing
hugs
doing something you love
meditation
positive thoughts
cold shower

Your energy is sacred. Like a delicate flame, it can be easily influenced by the winds of those around you. Build strong boundaries to protect your inner light, allowing it to shine brightly without being dimmed by the energies of others.

=Candice Erickson- Perham

Are you a person that has a high energy? Or some would call it a high vibration. I think of them as people who feel like sunshine.

Sunshine People: Natural Attractors

People are drawn to you. Kids and animals pick you out in a room. Strangers open up to you easily. You have the ability to shift the energy in a room. Toxic people are offended by your existence. It mocks their ability to control the mood. People are envious of you but they couldn’t exactly say why.

These types of people are like a magnet. They are highly sought after. These people are often the ones who are so worn out by their 40s that they are getting physically sick. Just an observation of mine.

What can these people do to protect their good energy? What should you do if you are one of these people?

take time to relax, restore, reflect
choose your battles
speak to yourself kindly, especially when emotions are high
remember you can step out of any social situation
ground yourself every morning (find rituals that bring that sensation)
reply to texts and phone calls when you have energy, not at the earliest possible moment
in an argument; remember what Brene Brown says,” I am not here to be right, I am here to get it right”

There is so much chaos and upheaval in the world today. This generates a lot of excess, discordant energy in our collective, human field. Make it a daily practice to clear your energy at least once a day. So much of whatever discomfort you might be feeling may have nothing to do with you. Protect your space accordingly.

-saratogaocean.com

Transforming Your Negative Energy: Steps to a Lighter You

What if you are the problem? If you are the holder of negative energy, are you doomed to be the destroyer of energy henceforth and forever? No. There are many ways to clear your negativity. You just have to be willing to take the steps. Including any of the following:

Practice gratitude with a guided meditation or start a gratitude journal
Breathing exercises e.g. box breathing (in for a count of 4, hold for 4, out for 4, hold for 4, repeat)
Lie in the grass to absorb the earth’s energy
Burn sage to cleanse the air of negativity
Put on a song you love and dance
Go for a nature walk (barefoot if possible)
Take a shower
Visualization of negative energies draining away
Repeat affirmations to increase your good vibes
Bath in epsom salts to cleanse your energy

Be careful that you do not carry the burdens of other people. You are not in charge of any other person’s responsibilities but your own. You are not responsible for how someone responds to the boundaries you create. You do not need to worry about the emotions of another, be aware, but do not take them on. When you are deciding if something is worth your energy, make sure you are involved. Do not put yourself into the conflicts between others. That excludes your own children while they are under your care. Some of those conflicts you should definitely step in on.

From Shadows to Sunshine: The Forest’s Energy Shift

There are so many ways that the forest can bring you good energy. Just being able to see green spaces. A patient’s hospital stay time is decreased and they use less pain medication. Time in nature with trees reduces stress and brain fatigue. Physical movement is generally good for a body. At any level to start.

Did you know that just looking up at trees branches can increase alpha brainwave activity. Making us feel more relaxed and yet more alert. It has to do with the fractal patterns formed by the branches. Add a little glint of sunshine through them and my day is made.

Specifically speaking, pine trees are known for bringing peace of mind and for being a helper tree. It can calm a restless mind. Thoughts and feelings become more harmonious. Just being in contact with a pine tree can start this healing process. Or so “they” say.

Affirm Your Power: Protecting Your Energy with Positive Words

Affirmations seem like a silly practice to some people. But those who have tried it know the power in them. An affirmation is a positive statement. Starting with “I am” or something similar, to bring your energy up or in this case, to protect your energy.

I am rooted and grounded, I have all the support I need in this present moment
I am choosing to feel grounded, calm, peaceful and secure
I am the only one that gets to choose how I feel
When I feel overwhelmed I can pause and breathe
I choose the power to rise above negative emotions that are not serving me
I am strong, steady and grounded
I am a powerful, peaceful, abundant energy
I am in charge of my energy, I get to choose how I feel in every moment
I am always supported and protected
I appreciate my ability to remain calm and peaceful in all situations

Find your tiny happy things. like sunshine. Singing along with the radio. Talking to animals. Reading a book you love. Fuzzy blankets. Lunch with a friend. When you find someone as goofy as you. Yummy desserts. Choose to be uplifted by your tiny happy things. To constantly fill your tank.

Cynefin
(Welsh) a place where one feels it ought to live and belong. where nature embraces and whispers its welcome.

This is my unending source of good energy. Nature.

And now for the most relaxing hour! Drumroll, please.

One Hour to Recharge: Shifting Energy from Gloom to Glow

If you have an hour to yourself, this is one way to use it to bring your energy up and regulate your nervous system in the process.

Step 1: 5 min of a breathing meditation, guided or self led

Step 2: Listen to ambient music for 10 min. I highly recommend weightless by Marconi Union

Step 3: For 15 min just close your eyes, nap if you want or just rest your eyes and your brain

Step 4: Find a gentle way to move for 20 min. Yoga. Tai chi. Sway dancing.

Step 5: For the last 10 min write a list of things you are grateful for.

Such a simple list. The benefits are far reaching. Try to schedule an hour to yourself once a week.

Today: soak in what’s real and what’s real is unhurried. The ground. The air. The exhale. The planted seed. The shift. The season.

-Victoria Erickson

That’s all folks. I hope you can relate to some of what I am talking about today. If you are enjoying what you are reading, subscribe with the button at the bottom of the page. If you’d like to hear more about a specific topic, let me know. And if you’d like to go even deeper with me. Shoot me a message and we can find a time for a forest walk. Take care.

It is the month of June, 
The month of leaves and roses,
When pleasant sights salute the eyes,
And pleasant scents the noses. 
-Nathaniel Parker Willis