It’s my first day back in Utah in a few weeks and I’ve chosen to do nothing today.  That nothing has consisted so far of the following:

1. wondering how on earth the same coffee can taste better in Costa Rica vs Utah

2. walking Zona around the block 4 times bc I’m  focusing on my fun phone conversations with different friends

3. leaving a love msg on Adam’s skype, because I know he’s still sleeping

4. talking to Adam’s mom who is at hospice care with his grandpa

5. unwrapping my winterized scooter to piece it back together

6. finding the safe place where I stored the scooter battery

6. Talking to Adam on skype and having an “ah ha” moment with him regarding gratitude, asking for help, accepting help & communication re perceptions at the beginning of our relationship

7. googling how to install a scooter battery

8. Txting friends asking for help on aforementioned scooter battery

9. Wondering about the topics that arise when I begin to type “does red connect to”

10. Knocking on doors of 2 neighbors’ homes seeing if they’ll help me reinstall my scooter battery

11. Wondering if you noticed that I repeated 6

12. Missing my Adam as I see his crystals and clothes all around my house and

13. Me smiling if you went back to see if I did in fact repeat 6

14. answering a phone call from a friend who said he’ll come help reinstall my battery later today.

As you can see, I had a busy morning of “doing nothing,” but look at how much I accomplished!  In doing nothing, a ton got done. No, that’s not an oxymoron.  “We” as a society have put the definition of “doing nothing” into a restrictive box of ________ behaviors and accompanied by ___________ perceptions about “doing nothing.”

Whistle while you accomplish everything you need to do...

May you surround yourself with a love & tribe of family, that helps you accomplish everything through having fun doing nothing.

–

I woke up this morning in Costa Rica feeling a bit disoriented. I felt very well-rested, yet our bedroom was very dark, telling me it was still night. I shifted a bit, to rearrange myself back into my sleep, when I felt The Oracle, who’s the Queen of burrowing herself under our covers, come bounding towards me, ready to go outside.

I focused on my surroundings more and realized there were shimmers of light coming through the dark window, and I realized Adam had taped black trash bags over the outside of the window, in hopes of capturing a little more of his coveted night time rest. I trusted my body’s alarm clock, so The Oracle and I rose to meet the morning.

Today was my last full day in Costa Rica with Adam and we’d scheduled a cleaning lady to come at 10am to do $20 worth of work to our house. I had no idea that I’d get so much perspective from a kind Costa Rican lady cleaning our house.

We met our new cleaner a few days ago as she was finishing up at our neighbor’s house. We were about to leave for a few weeks to the states, so I wanted the house to be clean for when we returned. I began to tidy up the house & prepare for our new friend, ironic I know, to clean the house for the cleaner, but it’s something I normally do, even in Utah.

So Adam told me we were going to pay her $20 to clean, and that’s all I knew. So I wanted to take care of some little stuff, so we could get the most of our $20, which usually got me an hour or so in Utah. Our kind new friend arrived 10 min early and began the journey of cleaning our little home. Now keep in mind it wasn’t very dirty in my mind, because I do regular upkeep of it. However, we emerged from our lounge after an hour or so, to find an enormous pile of dirt/sand/I don’t know what that was in the center of the floor, as well as all the drawers removed from the fridge, and all the furniture moved around. She smiled at us while she clearly was intending to meticulously clean every square inch.

We took our time at the Shack, enjoying our brunch, and returned to find a spotless house and our kind cleaning lady scrubbing the outside windows, railings and door. Whoa. I was blown away. And this kind of dedication is standard here. She has just now left, after spending nearly 6 hours here, and she gratefully took the $28 from us, when her rate is roughly $3/hr. We scheduled with her for next month when we return and are excited to have started this wonderful new relationship.

I know this isn’t Utah and I know the value of money is different down here, However what I loved seeing was her complete dedication to what she committed to doing and her gratitude that we recognized that and can’t wait for her to return.

So in a lot of the things that fill your day, may you do a little more than is expected, and be met with a little more gratitude than you didn’t realize you’d hoped for.

Namaste.

I mention these things because they gave me some perspectives

Adam proposed to me in a trailer park in Colorado.  It was perfect.  He had no prior plan to pop the question, hence no ring to “present” to me, but he gave me a gift far more valuable than any diamond: the moment. The moment was us sharing complete solidarity & love.  That sunny afternoon in Colorado, I felt the moment everywhere in my body: tingling in my scalp as though I were getting a massage, a pang in my chest as my heart felt like it was bursting open, excited butterflies in my stomach and my legs feeling so light, that I wasn’t sure they could support me standing anymore! I was literally having a chemical reaction in my body to this moment of complete joy & excitement.  That to me, said so much about whether your thoughts effect your health.  Yes.

I’ve heard a lot of responses to Adam & I’s relationship:

“this ‘phase’ will pass

“oh the joy of new love”

“I remember that phase…”

“Oh just wait until you’ve been together ____ years. Things will be different”

To everyone…

Above, I described my body’s chemical reaction to the joy in the moment of Adam’s proposal. How could you think that the body/mind discriminates?  It doesn’t.  It’s going to respond to whatever you choose to give it, positive or negative. Therefore how could you NOT want to choose love over fear…if not for the sake of your own physical health.

Remember how you felt when you first kissed your love, married him/her, got a new puppy, gave birth to your child or got the new job you were hoping you’d get?  These are ALL memorable moments that came with a very distinct physical reaction in your body.  It was you reacting to joy, excitement & love.  It felt amazing.

Now if you remember anything negative that has happened to you, the same physical reaction will occur in your body, except the physical manifestation of negativity or pain is far different than joy or love.  Manifestations include but are not limited to pangs in your heart, shortness of breath, increased heart rate, a sensation that your chest is caving in, your brows furrow, your head beginning to pound and muscles throughout your body tighten. If you choose to stay in this physical manifestation to your reaction, then your well being will be compromised.

Fear creates a reaction in the body as powerful as Love.  So which do YOU choose?

“Bad” stuff is going to keep happening to you. Yay! Look at it all as opportunities for growth. It’s how you handle the “stuff” that comes along, that makes all the difference.

Adam and I embrace all shifts that happen between u.  Of course the energy between us won’t ALWAYS remain exactly like it is now, that would be terrible!  If it did, that would mean we would be static.  I look forward to experiencing eVeRy kind of emotion and experience with Adam, so that we have boundless opportunities to learn more about how to love each other.  How exciting that in our long life together, we get to choose how to respond, amid whatever environment or life circumstance we encounter.

Choose Love

Life becomes quite simple when you realize you always have a choice with regards to everyone or anything that crosses your path:

FEAR or LOVE.

I love mind blows that can be expressed so simply: Choose Love. Bam.

You’re welcome, have an amazing day.

Adam just brought me a “Beautiful Day Sandwich,” who’s ingredients include:

wheat bread, mayo, cheese, turkey, slices of avocado, sometimes mustard and sometimes blue cheese, depending on whether we’re in Utah or CR.  Blue Cheese is hard to come by in Costa Rica.  Aforementioned ingrediants are then grilled on stove.

Heaven.

While I was writing about the Art of Doing Nothing, Adam was busy doing nothing in the kitchen, and getting everything accomplished.  The mastery in which he puts into the simple art of making a sandwich exemplified the art of nothingness.

And that’s something that I want to bring up.  I listed a bunch of activities in my previous post about things I accomplish during my nothing, but interweaving himself throughout my moments is Adam.  We’re in a constant ceremony together of awareness, making sure each other’s needs are being met, emotionally and physically.

So again, through Doing Nothing, EVERYTHING is accomplished.

Adam doing nothing

This is Adam putting his heart into doing nothing. There were several people at Karaoke that night, but Adam and I were so enveloped into our simultaneous nothings, that we only saw each other.

Doing Nothing means to live completely in the moment and to follow your excitement. That’s what we do here in Costa Rica, all day, everyday.

After Adam sang, he returned to the table where I was sitting, and we were joined by a young blond guy carrying a cocktail. We exchanged a few pleasantries about the night and he clearly wanted us to know he was “local” and then seem surprised when several other people, including the bar owner Kelly, greeted Adam and I by name.

He seemed surprised by the notion that we were local too, as he made it a point to mention that he hadn’t heard of us or seen us around. Adam politely let the blond “local” know that he’d lived in Potrero for several years, and then I proudly watched my man begin to get visibly excited that it was almost his turn to sing again.

“What do you do here,” blond “local” man curtly asked Adam.

“I do nothing,” replied Adam, and he skipped lightly up to the front, took the microphone from the dj and smiled at me as he prepared to display his unbelievably talented rendition of “Hey there Delilah” by the Plain White Tees.

There was a clear frustration from blond “local” guy, and he snidely mumbled, “What the f%$# does ‘I do nothing’ mean?”

We didn’t get the opportunity to explain to blond “local”  guy what “doing nothing” looks like, but I will take time to explain it to you now, while I’m in the midst of MY doing nothing

When I “do nothing” in Costa Rica, the following things are accomplished:

my businesses grow
the house gets cleaned
my man hears how much I love him

the dogs get attention
I honor my yoga practice
I catch up on spa paperwork
I sort through emails and pictures
I connect with new friends and contacts through a myriad of mediums
I visualize our wedding
I call myself out on hold patterns
I laugh
I cry
I run on the beach
I take a nap with adam and the dogs
I write letters I’d wished I had the time to write
I feel
I love
I show gratitude…

And that’s probably about half a day’s work of doing nothing…

Adam has his own list of all the things that are accomplished while he does nothing WITH me.

“Doing nothing” is a little trickier when we’re back in Utah, as I’m constantly reminded of old patterns and my busy ways of life, ruled by to-do lists and clocks. That doesn’t mean “nothing” isn’t accomplished, it just takes a little more focus to be present in my moments.

So appreciate every moment individually and give each moment your full attention, even if it’s just for an inkling of a second. If you can accomplish that, you’ve mastered the art of doing nothing.

Doing Nothing is a beautiful daily ceremony that anyone can employ, and I hope they will.

In talking about our retreat, I continually hear people say they really WANT to go, but probably can’t afford it.  I have a hard time understanding this perspective fully.   You attract what you focus on, so if you think you can’t afford it, you won’t, because you’re coming from scarcity.Choose abundance and go after what you want:

1. Adjust your behavior

2. Create an awareness journal about your behavior changes to achieve your goal

3. Enjoy the process

4. Watch yourself achieve your goal bc you focused on abundance, not scarcity

For example, if you see the value for yourself in attending the August retreat to Costa Rica,

here’s how you afford it, from a place of conscious abundance and not scarcity:

1. starting today, save $20 a day

2. keep a daily journal what that $20 savings looked like

So how could you save $20 per day?

-make your meals
-don’t go to starbucks
-play a board game with friends rather than go out
-suggest a social event that doesn’t need $
-shop at a second hand store for what you need
-ride your bike or walk when you can

Often I look at where some of my money goes and I’m amazed. There are many small shifts in behavior or habits that could add up to a lot of savings.

Adopt an attitude of Abundance and consciousness about where your $ goes and how you can spend less.  It’s a fun meditation exploring consciousness and awareness.

If you begin TODAY, you’ll have $2240. Whoa, really.

That would cover more than the retreat & airfare, so if you don’t join us, I hope you do this meditation so that you can have an extra $2240 to spend on whatever excites you!

Adam Lanka, Harriet McEntire and James Hardy invite you to a yoga and soul immersion August 3-10 in Playa Potrero, Costa Rica.

It’s all about choice on this retreat, so participate as much or as little as you want. It’s all up to you…

We will provide you with a loose guideline of daily activities that include but are not limited to:

Yoga
Hiking
Surfing
Swimming
Meditation
Doing Nothing
Snorkeling
Dance parties
Introspective solo & group activities
Awareness exercises & scavenger hunts

Adam will be available for Shamanic healing, Harriet for massage and we have the talented James on both his guitar and as our primary yoga instructor. Other yoga instructors are welcome to attend this retreat as a guest, and we’ll always welcome your inquiry to teach a class or group meditation.

The price for the week starts at $1234.56 and includes:

Meals and lodging at Bahia Del Sol
Daily guided yoga & meditation
Evening optional group activities
Airport shuttle
Community outreach
A few unexpected dance parties
A memorable gift from us for you to take home

The airport to use is Liberia: LIR

We have space for about 25 people, so visit our website to secure your spot with a $75 deposit.

www.gatewayexplorations.com

Namaste

Hang out with Harriet, Adam & James August 3-10th in Costa Rica

I saw a post of Facebook from a Yoga Blog asking for yoga instructors to submit pertinent topics for their audience.  They wanted yoga instructors bc they tend to have something important to say to the community.  Huh.  I’m not an instructor, but I certainly have a lot to say, so I sent them this:

I may not be a yoga instructor per se, but I’m an instructor in many other things.  I’m an Empath, Massage Therapist, Yogi, Perfectionist, Feminist, Therapist, Yoga Retreat Company Owner, Student of the Universe, Dog Owner, Day Spa Owner and Soul Mate to an amazing man.

“About” is such a broad word.  Am I supposed to write about myself, Harriet, about my spa, Align or about what I intend to write about…how about all of the above and more.

I’m a woman, a certain age and I’m married  to my twin flame.  We live purposefully and consciously and we are the change we wish to see in the world.  We are LOVE, and we bring that to every aspect of our lives as best we can.  And when we mess up, we either look at that, correct it when need be and commit to doing better.

We write about anything that inspires us.