Soulful Sunday #42: Birthday Wishes

Welcome to my forty-second instalment of ‘Soulful Sundays’. A weekly share where I post a roundup of soulful reflections, each including recipes, songs, quotes, blogs I have read and/or any other inspirational discoveries to sooth the soul.

For me, Sunday’s have become a day of quiet contemplation and simple pleasures. A time to reflect on the week gone by and to consider my hopes and dreams for the week ahead.

My hope is to extend some love outward and to share some simple pleasures with anyone who cares to receive them.

Soul Reflections

This week I have been like a little hedgehog in hibernation. I am working on my book proposal for the Hay House Writers Workshop Competition and at one point, I became so overwhelmed with the realisation that I’d over commitment myself to friends and family, that I had a little anxious cry. I took a deep breathe and reached out to explain my intentions to complete my submission on time. Sure enough, I was met with nothing but compassion and understanding – and that is exactly why I can safely call my friends ‘friends’. Real friends understand.

Just as time spent with friends and loved ones is crucial for a happy existence, so is time spent alone.

Honouring our alone time is essential for balance and renewal. During these stolen moments of solitude we reconnect with ourselves; our deepest dreams, wishes, hopes and desires.

Taking a break from the world doesn’t mean that we care any less for our friends and family, it simply means that we love them enough to take care of ourselves first. We cannot give away what we don’t have. If we are depleted, out of touch with ourselves, tired and run down – how can we give the best of ourselves to others?

Today, take a guilt free moment of peace.

‘Compassion is not complete if it does not include oneself.’
– Allan Lokos.

Know that in serving YOU first, you can better serve the world. When you take the time to connect with who you are; your truest, essential nature – the love and compassion you show for yourself will ultimately bless those you come into contact with.

Soul Strolls

Last weekend it was my birthday, and what better way to turn 33 than to spend it out in nature with my man. We loaded the car and off we drove to Warburton – a peaceful pocket of peace just 90 minutes from home.

We stayed on a lovely rustic farm surrounded by green acres. It was bliss. And we even made a little friend!

 

We explored rain-forests and revelled in the tranquil outdoors. I loved these luscious green ferns and the way they slowly unravel into their full expansiveness over time… A beautiful unfolding of life right there.

The sound of the rushing waterfalls and the smell of the forest ferns was intoxicating. As Mother Nature enveloped us in her tranquil hug, I couldn’t help but feel at peace.

Soul Food

Last weekend I decided to treat myself since it was my birthday! I enjoyed two puddings because I couldn’t decide between the Coconut Chia and Rasberry pudding and the Peanut Butter and Almond Milk Oats – so I bought both! Yum! I plan to replicate both of these and will share the recipe once I perfect them 🙂

Soul Music & Soul Sisters

On our way back from Warburton, we stopped in to visit my good friend and fellow blogger, Miriam Blaker from Out & About. I had the pleasure of being serenaded buy this sweet soul who’s voice is just simply Divine. What made the moment even more special, was the song that Miriam sang for us was written by another soul sister and fellow blogger of ours, Deb from Once Upon A Hot Flash. 

You can hear Miriam singing Deb’s song on Miriam’s latest post here!

Co-creation at it’s best!

Birthday wishes really do come true. For my birthday, I had wished for a magical weekend of balance and calm, and to be surrounded by nature and those who are nearest and dearest to me – especially since my family live on the other side of the world…

I can honestly say, all of my wishes came true ❤

Here’s to finding balance, to following our dreams, and to heartfelt wishes fulfilled.

In love & light,

Hayley xx

Soulful Sunday #15: Unchartered Lands

Welcome to my fifteenth instalment of ‘Soulful Sundays’. A weekly share where I post a roundup of soulful reflections, each including recipes, songs, quotes, blogs I have read and/or any other inspirational discoveries to sooth the soul.

For me, Sunday’s have become a day of quiet contemplation and simple pleasures. A time to reflect on the week gone by and to consider my hopes and dreams for the week ahead.

My hope is to extend some love outward and to share some simple pleasures with anyone who cares to receive them.

Soul Reflections

On Thursday I wrote about overcoming perceived failures and finding the courage to voyage unchartered lands. At the age of seventeen, I fell in love with this quote:

We travel not to escape life, but for life not to escape us.

– Anonymous

That was it – off I went with my backpack in tow. Anyone who has ever left home will know that it takes courage to lose sight of the shore, and a willingness to step away from all we have known. But in order to discover new lands, we needn’t travel far and wide – we simply need to go where we have never been before. To break free from our zone of comfort and step into the unknown.

Our voyage may be an internal one; a pilgrimage of the soul. Who knows what hidden treasures we’ll uncover? The long lost dreams we might unearth… As we sail the depths of our oceans we learn to navigate our deepest wants, desires and wishes. What excites us? What beckons us to draw near? What causes us to rebel and make an about turn? If we don’t know where we are going and why we are going there, then our journey will be short lived. So find the courage to dig deep. Be unafraid to explore the depths of your soul. For our true essence is the guiding compass that will steer us safely home, time and time again.

Soul Strolls

I think I’m becoming known as the ‘flower stalker’ in our local park. I walk twice a day to this same park, yet each week new flowers blossom and bloom it’s as tough my soul strolls are always new. I captured these pretty colours this week.

Soul Food

Last Sunday I mentioned that I’ve been drinking a lot of smoothies lately, especially since the weather is lovely and warm here in Melbourne. So I thought I’d share with you my absolute favourite Choco-Berry Smoothie recipe. It tastes divine and the best part is, it’s healthy! Did someone say guilt-free chocolate?

Soul Sounds

This week I took 50 children to see Moana with the holiday club program. If you have children, find an excuse to watch the film! Now! It was beautifully uplifting, emotive and funny too. Since the theme of todays post is losing sight of the shore, I thought I would share the track How Far I’ll Go from the movie, which we all just loved.

Soul Brothers

This week I am sharing Ronovan’s Haiku ‘Hidden Treasures‘ in keeping with Sunday’s theme of discovering new lands. Head over to his blog Ronovan Writes and have a read!

Wishing you a wonderful voyage on this magical Sunday,

In love & light,

Hayley xx

 

Soulful Sundays #6: The Early Bird Catches the Worm

Welcome to my sixth instalment of ‘Soulful Sundays’. A weekly share where I post a roundup of soulful reflections, each including recipes, songs, quotes, blogs I have read and/or any other inspirational discoveries to sooth the soul.

For me, Sunday’s have become a day of quiet contemplation and simple pleasures. A time to reflect on the week gone by and to consider my hopes and dreams for the week ahead.

My hope is to extend some love outward and to share some simple pleasures with anyone who cares to receive them.

Soul Reflections

I resonate a lot with Terri’s quote. I never used to be an early riser, but I cultivated a habit of going to bed earlier and waking just before the sun rises. Of course, there are days when I don’t make this – but when I do wake and the sun is already up, like Terri – ‘I feel the world has started without me.’ There is something sublime about the silence of the morning, broken only by the merry hum of the songbirds. While the rest of the world sleeps, early risers have already set their intentions for the day, greeting the new dawn with grateful hearts and a gentle knowing. While the rest of the world begins to wake, early risers have cultivated a quite contentment that will last throughout much of the day, having spent the last hour sowing seeds of peace and purpose. I feel a marked difference on the days I manage to rise with the sun, compared to those when I am late to catch the train.

If you aren’t already waking to catch the sun rise, I encourage you to practise this habit. Begin gradually if you need to, going to bed fifteen minutes earlier and rising fifteen minutes earlier, until you have slowly worked your way towards greeting the new day at sun rise. You wont regret it.

*tip – if you are in the winter months, it will be harder! So leave some warm clothes by the bed, a hot water bottle and a heater to encourage you to leave the warmth of your cosy bed!

We went camping this weekend with friends, and while the rest of the happy campers slept, I rose to catch the sunrise along the beach. I was met with this beautiful sky. I love the way the sun breaks the clouds and resembles heaven’s light, greeting the surface of the ocean with a gentle kiss.

I watched as the surfers dotted the shoreline, patiently awaiting the moment they could connect with Mother Nature.  Her voluptuous bosom swells as she breathes life into the ocean, the surfers seizing her glorious waves. They are free. She is free. And all of this at the break of day.

Soul Strolls

A man and his two peaceful companions stopping to enjoy the sunrise this morning.

Our beautiful camping grounds at Jan Juc, Melbourne. So tranquil and picturesque.

Soul Food 

We arrived home later than usual due to camping. I like to nourish my body, especially after a weekend of nature, and so decided to make a quick Coconut & Currant Curried Quinoa. It is quick to prepare and tastes delicious. Plus I have leftovers for my work lunch tomorrow, as this dish can also be enjoyed from chilled.

Soul Sounds 

Today, in keeping with the theme of nature, I am sharing another meditation track titled ‘Echoes of Time.’ This track, with it’s use of wind instruments and flutes, reminds me of the sounds of nature.

Soul Brothers

Today I am sharing the post of Sourav from Indihope, where he shares 5 Quick Tips to Set Yourself Free. You will be both surprised and inspired by Sourav’s list, which gets to the heart of the matter and offers suggestions you may not have considered.

In love and light,

Hayley xx

Home

Writing 101, Day 3: One-word inspiration

Sometimes, a single word is all you need to get your mind’s wheels turning.

The word I chose was ‘home’. I must still be in the mindset of last month’s Poetry 201 Challenge since I decided to write in the form of a poem. I have never seen myself as a poet, yet I do hope you enjoy my take on ‘home’.

Tell me, where is home?
Is it the place that one has always known?
Or the place where time is spent the most
In between travelling from coast to coast?

And tell me, am I alone,
That I should not identify with home?
Those familiar scents of toast and wood,
Reviving memories of all things good.

And please Sir, what of home,
If you should spend your days there all alone?
No callers since your family has flown.
Would this remain your safe, sacred home?

What say you? What is home?
For should I settle and no longer roam,
I shall coin a bosom to safely lay
A fine home of heart to see out my days.

Presthaven Sands

Writing 101, Day 2: A Room with a View (or Just a View)

If you could zoom through space in the speed of light, what place would you go to right now?

Today’s twist: organize your post around the description of a setting.

A place belongs forever to whoever claims it hardest, remembers it most obsessively, wrenches it from itself, shapes it, renders it, loves it so radically that he remakes it in his own image.

– Joan Didion

A wave of nostalgia rises in my chest as I wistfully leave the quiet of my quaint Oxfordshire room. I am washed upon the shores of Presthaven Sands. It has been over twenty years since I have walked these grassy dunes, yet I am here now, a child again; blissfully unaware that these moments spent holidaying in Wales, would be some of the last of a time when our family remained complete.

I remember well the walk from our caravan to the beach; wooden walkways weaving upwards through the dunes, stopping just short of the crest of the hill. I try to keep up with my sister, Sarah, who races ahead in her usual bid to lose me. She is two years older than I am, but her height would have you think more, at five years of age she is all legs and feet. Some of the horizontal slats are missing from the pathway and I hesitate before hopping across to safety. The thick, grassy blades beneath are sharp, but my memory sharper, as I recall a previous trip to Wales when one of those blades borrowed itself deep into the sole of my foot. Oh! How I’d tried to fight back my tears as Mum removed it from my tender skin.

With trepid steps I continue, the wind whipping through my hair as it carries the high-pitched yelps of Alex, our fluffy white Samoyed, high up into the sky. Never did I feel so alive then in this moment of pure anticipation and bliss. The beach was a rare experience for a young girl growing up in Tameside, Manchester, and I longed to stay in that place forever.

I finally reach the summit, joining my sister at the top. We stand overlooking the beach below, eagerly glancing over our shoulders as we await the moment Mum would signal our descent. She’s talking to my Auntie and Uncle and we try to catch her attention. I can just make out Dad’s dark hair dancing in the distance, wild like the wind, as he trails a few feet behind the others. Dad mostly walked in solitude, preferring to take it all in. When Mum finally nods her head, off we bolt, racing down to the beach below! Our descent is as dangerous as it is thrilling; the fear of being bowled over by a big barking bundle of fluff; the stray sand dunes with their thick, pointy blades, the jagged rocks and sea shells which have been washed up along the beach edge. I stop to collect a few, holding the hem of my dress and placing them gently inside my make shift hammock. I have vivid memories of lining them up once back at the caravan, cleaning them and admiring my new-found treasures. Even now, aged thirty, I own shiny pebbles from the beaches I have visited across the globe. My Mum says I’m a hoarder. Admittedly I am, but only a hoarder of memories and sentimental things. I’m much more brutal when it comes to discarding material objects, (much to the satisfaction of the local charity shops!)

We walk our usual annual walk to the lighthouse; a walk we can only take once the tide is out. Mum tells us that we’ll have to be quick before the tide returns, which only adds to the thrill and excitement of our adventure. The further we walk, the more the sand resembles the sea, which has left behind imprints of ripples and waves. We stop along the way to kick a beach ball with Dad, to draw pictures in the sand with sticks, and to admire the rainbow coloured jelly fish which have been washed up along the shore. Alex yelps at them and has a good sniff. Mischievously, Sarah and I throw lumps of sand on top of them to see how their bodies wobble. As we get nearer, the white and red speck of the lighthouse on the horizon grows taller and taller until eventually, it looms large above our heads like a giant majestic sea creature! The sea waves crash against the rocks as the sound of seagulls circling above permeates the air. We climb the jagged edge to the lighthouse, our feet slippery and mucky from the soggy sand. Once sitting safely, we gaze out over the water and breathe the salty sea air deep into our lungs.

We made it! Our family; forever united in our perilous adventures across Presthaven sands. And it is here I remain, in that perfect place, which is forever imprinted in my heart.