And these types of connective conversations, where we intend to really understand and honor another human in their full humanness, really are sacred. We feel differently when we're seen differently. We feel whole when we're seen as whole. We feel lovable when our inherent lovability is reflected back to us.

So you can come at it from lots of approaches — practicing joyspotting, committing to a Daily Delights practice, consciously dialing up your intuition and creativity  — but the result is the same: 

By turning our attention intentionally toward these uplifting qualities, we enliven our spirit; are reminded of our pure, loving essence; and remember that we’re connected to all of life.

Discerning between when it’s time to push something forward through disciplined action versus when it’s time to plant seeds, rest, germinate, and then ride the wave of energy and inspiration when it naturally starts to crest again can feel fuzzy, for sure. But we can prime our awareness to be better able to discern between when it’s time to give ourselves a loving nudge forward and when it’s time to honor a rest/germination/stillness/inward phase.

Synchronicities are those incidents that seem on the surface simply like happy coincidences. The perfect resource or connection showing up “randomly” in the perfect way at the perfect time. But if we tune in more closely, synchronicities can deliver really potent information.

The more conscious we become, the less painfully, less loudly, and less extensively the universe needs to “knock on our door” to get our attention. If we're tuned in enough to “catch” the first, quietest whispers signaling to us that something's out of whack within us and we take aligned action to return things toward center right then, those painful tactics don't have to amplify.

The more we can lean into noticing and soften our mind's preoccupation with knowing — in some illusory, fixed, certain, permanent way — as we go through the moments and wonders of the days of our life, the more loving and life-affirming our attention becomes. 

It all makes sense looking backward. But we can’t know that from the vantage point of our current ego-mind state that's lost in the weeds of “how” and worry and doubt. But the thing is: You don't have to know what the whole path forward will look like. Just follow the next breadcrumb you see appearing in front of you. And then the next one. The rest of the path will clarify - and your trust will grow - as you go.

With each new crack in a previously fixed sense of self and identity, with each painful rift from something we thought was stable or permanent in our lives, with every deep desire we've clung to that proves itself to, in the end, not be what our soul needed, we’re given the opportunity to start fresh in the current moment again and again. Now the practice of life begins.

Transformation is a cleansing process. A purification. A detoxification. Transformation alchemizes what's here now into a higher-frequency, more integrated, more expansive form.

So yes, learning to change our habits and shift our mindset is incredibly valuable. But if you truly want to experience life in a way that feels deeply aligned and connected and enlivening, that can only happen by slowing down. Getting present. And dropping into your body to see what’s swirling deep within your being, calling for the courage for soul-level transformation. 

In order to move back toward an embodied sense of integrated wholeness within our Selves as adults, we have to start to gradually - in ways and at a pace that feel safe enough to our most vulnerable parts - learn that it now actually is safe and OK to touch into those feelings that felt too hot to touch all those years ago.

These qualities — when intentionally noticed as they’re felt in the moment and in the body — connect us to the rhythm and magical quality of the universe at large, beyond our limited and limiting small ‘s’ sense of self.  And they drop us out of our intellectual mind and ego filter into a direct experience of being alive as felt through the senses and through tracking the movement of energy in our bodies.

Our insights don't just stay at the mental/intellectual level. They drop into our body as embodied wisdom on a somatic, cellular, energetic level. And as that authentic embodiment settles into our being, and as we stay dedicated to strengthening our heart muscles through practices like loving-kindness, our intuition lights up as well.

What if we decide to not only surrender into the wave, but also choose to trust that every wave life brings us is actually for our soul's greatest good?

There's no need to overcomplicate things. The simplest wisdom is the most profound.

The more practiced we become at tuning into what we're picking up through our senses in the body and noting and naming what we're feeling emotionally in any given moment, the more easily and consistently we can initiate positive change.

Having not been back to Nosara, Costa Rica in 17 years, I knew it would feel amazing to be here, but also anticipated it possibly feeling a bit bittersweet. Historically when I've revisited places that felt transformative to my younger self I've often still felt part of myself “tugged” toward them, my mind quietly conjuring fantasies of upending my life in the States and moving myself / my family to this slower-paced, more Earth- and rhythms-of-life-connected, simpler-lifestyled place. But what I felt this time was, instead, a deep and peaceful sense of integration.

We can be scared and brave at the same time. Fear and resistance don't have to be taken as red lights. They can be interpreted or explored, rather, as signs that something within us is calling for some attention, inquiry, or care. We can view fear and resistance as flashing yellow lights calling our attention inward to explore our inner landscape and see where the fear or resistance is coming from so we can validate, soothe, calm, reassure, and resource those unsure parts of us.

The practice of repeatedly and consistently withdrawing our attention from what things look like outside of us and turning our attention instead inward toward what things feel like within us, while at first glance a seemingly subtle shift, is actually quite revolutionary. Because self-love is a natural byproduct of self-intimacy. Self-intimacy is a natural byproduct of self-friendliness. Self-friendliness is a natural byproduct of self-awareness.

Given the right conditions and consistent care, that seedling of the part of yourself you've been missing can be nourished back toward flourishing. It all depends on which parts of yourself you place your intention and your attention on again and again and again.

Authenticity naturally and effortlessly radiates from you when you're in a reasonably relaxed, centered, embodied (connected to the felt sense of being in a body, rather than being lost in thought) state. Being authentic actually requires zero thought and — hard as this can feel to wrap our conceptual minds around — zero effort.