A Little Bit Wild and VERY Free
Happy New Year ...and welcome to 2019! We got back from a family trip to Costa Rica about a week ago where dirt roads, miles of preserved land, tuk tuks, ATV's, no street lights no beach passes and no beach rules left us all feeling a little bit WILD and VERY FREE. There were so many teachable moments on this trip but here's the one that stuck with me the most...
Our last night of travel we stayed at a beautiful coffee plantation where we learned all about the history of the family who farmed, built and lived off the land. At dinner (on the farm) an older gentleman walked passed my son as he was eating. My son shouted out, "Hellooooooo Mr. Mannnnnnn!" The man loved this invitation and came over to our table to chat. It turns out he was the second generation owner of the plantation and he was having dinner with his family a few tables away. We had so many questions for him. How did he decide to move from L.A. to Costa Rica to raise his family on this plantation, how did he build a small farm into a huge plantation and why coffee? And on, and on...
With the biggest smile and deepest belly laugh he shared how he never had any clue what he was doing, that he made 1 million mistakes, recovered from them, erased them and then made 1 million more...over and over and over again. No shame, no guilt... just mistakes that were recognized and worked through.
In 2019 I'm making space for myself to make mistakes, to congratulate myself for showing up and make the mistake instead of never showing up at all. I'm leaning into my mistakes and doing the hard work to work through them. And I'm making space for my children and loved ones to make mistakes too so I can support, accept and love them through theirs the best way that I know how.
Having a creative space in which you allow yourself to "make mistakes" is one of the best ways to get to a place of deep connection, acceptance and compassion towards yourself. Remember when Bob Ross used to make "Happy Little Mistakes?" He was definitely onto something. Our mistakes carry so much wisdom if we are willing to engage with them.
Come make happy little mistakes with me!!!