Good for you.

Ever wonder why we can't just be whatever we want?  I mean, some people can, but not all of us.  We worry about what people will think, who we might disappoint, etc. 

Growth is hard. 

It really is.  Because when you grow, you leave things behind, even people.  But people who don't grow, or grow at a different pace than you, or in a different direction that you get offended when you don't stay the same. 

It kind of like someone buying you a pair of Unicorn slippers for Christmas because they know you love unicorns, even though you haven't loved unicorns since you were 12. 

Ok, that was a crappy analogy, but you know what I mean.  I'm not the same girl I always was - heck, I'm not the same girl I was yesterday. 

Just because something resonates with you doesn't mean it resonates with me.  And just because something from a certain "category" resonates with me, doesn't mean I fully fit into said category.  I've said before that I don't like boxes and have spent my whole life trying to find the one I fit into (only to realize that boxes are for the birds).

Things that are important to you may not be important to me and vice versa, and guess what?  That's OKAY.  I promise. 

I've been searching for how to deal with leaving people behind who can't be left behind, if that makes any sense.  People who are around for the long haul, but that you've outgrown, or can't connect to anymore. 

See, I've never been good at bullshitting.  Actually, that's probably one of the things that I'm the worst at in life.  I don't care about that sports team, or your makeup, or how the weather is, or what so and so is up to.  And I have a really hard time engaging in things I don't care about/don't agree with/don't believe in.  I don't have to proclaim my view, but I can't really fake in sharing yours very well, so I always flounder around until I fall silent. 

Well, a friend taught me the PERFECT response to for moments like that:

good

for

you.

 
That's it.

Good for you.

Isn't it wonderful?

This way, I'm not compromising my beliefs by lying and I'm not being rude by not reacting.

Good for you.

You have a different religion?  Good for you. 
You love so and so?  Good for you. 
You're fighting to save the sea turtles?  Good for you. 
You got a new car?  Good for you.   
You're selling all your belongings and backpacking across Europe?  Good for you.
You got your nails done?  Good for you.
You're going vegan?  Good for you.

See?  You have no idea whether I believe in what you're doing or not, because I'm not agreeing with you, but I'm not judging you either. 

Imagine a world where we used good for you rather than judging each other, or feeling like we've betrayed ourselves by faking it to our friends and family.

Give it a try.  See how it works for you.
I think you'll find it's the perfect way to keep things kind.

Keep it Kind Unisex tee available in our shop.

Tee:  @TheWildFolkCo
Shorts: Target
Shoes: SaltWater Sandals
Bracelet: @Sundrenchd
Necklace: @@shopmountainmade

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Goodbye October

October is my favorite month.  Not just because of the whole pumpkin spice fad, (I'm old enough to remember life before flavored coffees), although they are pretty wonderful, aren't they?

October feels like freedom.
It's shedding of the old, to allow room for the new. 

Outside, the leaves begin to turn beautiful colors, fall from the tree, and leave the branches bare for the winter.  While the tree is bare, it rests, preparing for the spring, when new growth will begin.

Though I don't wait until October, I feel as if my spirit is often turning beautiful colors before it sheds parts of me that no longer serve my higher purpose.  Then I turn inward, rest, and reflect until new spiritual growth begins. 

This frequently occuring cycle is natural and happens to all of us.  We only have to turn our focus inward a bit to recognize it.
And embrace it.

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Crotchety Coast

For so long, I've been in denial. 
Wishing for something that is not. 

This girl.
Who loathes being covered in sand. 
Who doesn't like that crispy feeling after swimming in the salty sea.
Who has fair skin, burns after an hour, and needs to get honest with herself about making a trip to the dermatologist. 
This girl makes no secret that the beach is not my happy place.

I come alive in the woods and around fresh water.  Maybe because that's where I spend my formative years - living alongside a crystal clear river that begins at a beautiful spring. 
I've been longing to return to that place and live alongside that river - we even gave it a go, but it didn't work out, so we ended up back here.
For all this time, I've been holding on to this dream that we'd be somewhere, anywhere in the woods, alongside a fresh water source. 

We live near this lovely little beach in a town that is so full of people who are unlike me. 

When we lived in the city, everyone was just everyone. 
No one judged, no one cared. 
You could drive a pinto or a range rover, and no one batted an eye either way. 
When we lived in the city, if you put on your blinker on a crowded highway, someone made way for you to change lanes. 

But this town.
In this town, you may be run right off a bridge if you would like to merge when your lane is ending.
This town is full of transplanted people who come from somewhere very different than where I come from.
 There is no melting pot to mix the different types of people, for they are all nearly the same, save for a few. 
This town is full of what you call "new money," and I have learned that "no money" is far better than "new money" in terms of kindness offered to strangers.
Many here have to be better.
Before.
First.
More.
I don't even know if they realize what they are.
It only takes joining a local facebook group and observing how people talk to each other to make you cringe.
I've never seen anything like it.
Driven by ego.
Crotchety.

Joseph Campbell said, "When you get to be older, and the concerns of the day have all been attended to, and you turn to the inner life - well, if you don't know where it is or what it is, you'll be sorry."

I wrote this post to convince myself that acceptance is my key to happiness.  That this is where we are, so this is where we're meant to be, and that I should turn my attention to the present instead of dreaming for what may come one day.
I thought that putting it to words would help me pull up my boots and move on, but you know what?  I can't. 
I will always long for a place where I can be among the tall trees, and listen to the birds and the running water, but I think what I'm truly longing for is to be surrounded by different energy. 
Loving energy. 
Accepting energy. 
Putting people before yourself energy. 

Until then, I will spend more of my time in our city to the north, which has much more of a "kindness vibe," and learn to appreciate the beach more, because our little neighboring beach town truly is lovely - especially in the evenings when the sun has begun to fade.

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