I'm heading out soon on one of the first solo trips I've made since becoming a mom. It's a personal retreat in Tulum, Mexico, with Vanessa, who I met years ago while working in Costa Rica. She has a special gift, I think, for holding others in their own power. I'm calling my time with her a "celebration of middles"--middle of life, middle of momming, middle of marriage. A time of deep honoring and integration of past, present, and future selves.
To prep for this journey, I've been spending time setting pen to page with Vanessa's reflection questions. There are aspects of this work I'll need to keep sacred. But there will be others, like this piece, that will align with the power of growth in public. Or, as I like to call it, PBV (public displays of vulnerability). Cheesy... I know.
In any case, when it comes to intention setting, I often find that intentions "set" themselves. They arrive when we open up space, and then literally set themselves down in our lap--or gut, or heart, or wherever we feel intentions emerge and land. And then, maybe, they shift, and change, and evolve as we move through the experience itself. Unlike goals, I think intentions are meant to be held lightly, with curiosity and courage, both attuned and responsive to whatever might unfold.
Below is a rough collection of freewrites on pre-trip reflections. I share it in the spirit of PBV, of self-actualization and accountability, of mapping the water-like paths intentions tend to run through.
The idea of our wombs as cauldrons was inspired by the book Self Source-ery by Lisa Lister, which my dear soul sister Yazmín recommended. You can meet Lisa at The Sassy She, or sink into Yaz's magical music here.
And, if the idea of a personal retreat in magical Tulum tickles your interest, you can read more over here.
Thanks for listening.
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