Leaving behind
The city grind
The rolling farmlands
With their colorful crop bands
Peaceful are these lands
Soothing my mind
Allowing time
To unwind
And ponder
Of my journey yonder
With eyes in wander
As the quiet road winds
Tiny farmhouses I find
Some with trickling streams
And a glorious sunset backdrop means
My drive will end soon
To my home of peace…
(Written in 2015 – Sometimes in medical (Covid) times our minds just need a mental vacay)
Can just thinking about nature make you feel better? From first-hand experience, this Resort Girl believes that it can. Just this week, picturing a beach spot and sharing Resort Girl travels with a fellow RG — and my nurse — brought sunny skies after a necessary, but unnerving, medical procedure.
My RG nurse shared her favorite Florida getaway with me after the procedure. My nose could smell the salty air, and could I feel the sun on my face. I wanted to taste that low country cooking she was describing in delicious detail. And, even though I was clad in no-so-stylish medical attire while she spoke, we were both suddenly standing there in our RG lounge wear imaging this little piece of beach paradise.
Cognitive therapy also is a natural technique to handle everyday stressful situation — a little mind vacay for Resort Girls. A wise man once taught me how to use cognitive behavior instead of medicine to calm my very creative and sometimes overactive and reactive at times mind – which can be attributed to my DNA.
But all Resort Girls may want to try it out when facing a stressful life situation – to calm your mind to maybe make better decisions, or not say or do something reactive. It just breaks those 10 crucial seconds before words come out or adverse reactions start! It can also help you if you are temporarily in a place you don’t want to be — but need to be — like a hospital bed or having a medical procedure.
Here is the visual this wise man shared to calm the soul:
Picture a woman standing alongside a river bed with a beautiful hat in her hand. She may be someone you love and know like your mother or other RG BFF or maybe even you. Then, imagine this woman throwing her hat into the water and watch it slowly and gracefully gliding down the river bed. As you imagine it gliding downstream, it gives your mind just enough time to break that thought and ease into a calmer state.
(Today, this post is dedicated to my beautiful mother, who reads my blog everyday-but is presently in the hospital. She inspires great ideas and feedback and is my biggest fan and inspiration. Mother, we will be back at the beach soon – being Resort Girls. You will be out of the hospital…. and on the beach walking beside the dolphins again. Let’s keep that peaceful picture in our minds….)
Keep dreaming of those sunny blue skies Resort Girls… it is powerful medicine!
Repost: Resort Girls/Guys, let’s treat ourselves and take the time and relax, reflect and recharge in the beauty of nature’s silence. It calms the soul.
In this age of technological noise, you can easily forget what the world sounds like when everything is turned off. Everything is beautiful, from the tender songs of the birds to the echo of the wind against your ears to the crackling of the fire pit flames and the rustling of the autumn leaves. All these sounds can be drowned out, however, by the daily noise pollution of modern day life: TVs, computers, lawn equipment and highway traffic, to name a few.
It is the Thanksgiving holiday. The world is taking a break to power down in order to spend time around the table with the family to share and dine upon all of the Thanksgiving fixings, as well as giving thanks for their many blessings.
I’ve been moving into my new home for the past week and that is what brought the silence: silly me, forgetting to set the cable and internet up. So now, I’m sitting here on my deck, with no cable, observing the trees and draping moss.
The beauty of sitting here is that all I hear are the squirrels chewing away on acorns, the fall breezes echoing in my ears and the tiny chirps from the finches flying by. It is beautiful, quiet and peaceful. It calms one’s soul.
It also made me wonder how the historic days must have sounded before motorized vehicles and LED screens. How serene it must have been back then. As I see the moss on the mature oak tree dance in the wind, I wonder, did someone long ago sit here listening to just the beauty of the sounds of nature, just as I am doing now?
Resort Girls appreciate these sounds of nature. We support, appreciate and nurture this beauty through our respect and conservation of it and it, in turn, gives back to us.
The melodies of the morning birds wake us up. The sunlight streaming through our window panes greet us with bright beginnings to our day. The morning breezes make sipping our coffee sweeter than any cream. And the daily walks with nature keep our bodies healthy and sickness at bay.
I think maybe, we need to take more of these holidays away from the modern noise and give thanks to the beauty of silence. I plan to shut down, unplug, light up my candles and fire pit maybe once a week. My little Resort Girl holiday away from the modern world and back to a quieter time to give thanks to the serenity nature provides us – and all for free.
Resort Girls, let’s treat ourselves and take the time and relax, reflect and recharge in the beauty of nature’s silence. It calms the soul.
Oh, how many ways
There are to see sun rays
Through the thick tree moss
The sun rays do not get lost
Nor amongst the branch covered pathways
Or ocean waves
Even in cloudy days
The rays
Make their way
To shine down from the sky
To awaken eyes
With lasers of bright light and soulful sighs
At the majestic power
Of the rays showering
Down prisms of glory
Each sharing a different story
To our individual minds
As they remind
Us to find
The time
To look to the sky
And see the glory
In each and every day
Through the beauty of sun rays
Resort Girl
Are you as comfortable in heels as you are barefoot on the beach? Then you most likely own a piece from the Spartina 449 collection of designer handbags and accessories. Founded in 2009 by serial entrepreneur Kay Stanley, the line was inspired by the beauty, rich history and people of the charming Daufuskie Island.
So just who did Kay have in mind for her designs? She describes the Spartina woman as one who:
• Loves life
• Has an optimistic point of view
• Does not take life too seriously
• Enjoys herself
• And most of all…likes to have fun!
Since its inception, Spartina 449 has offered women signature linen handbags featuring leather accents with island tales woven into each pattern. From the first collection, Spartina patterns have drawn from Daufuskie Island’s lush natural environment and rich cultural history. Next came a variety of accessories including scarves and a jewelry line featuring necklaces, bracelets and charms.
In 2019, Kay decided it was time to “dress the Spartina woman a little bit more.” Thus, the premier apparel line debuted a spring collection in stores and online. The Spartina collection reflects laid-back luxe and casual elegance painted with vibrant colors. The line is constructed in fabrics that allow for flexibility, giving you the ability to run errands in ease, engage in day play and spontaneous adventures, and enjoy casual evenings by the water or river.
The collection captures the Spartina woman’s playful spirit! The spring line is made from only the finest Peruvian cotton, which lends an air of effortless elegance, with a little bit of spandex that allows the apparel to be more comfortable, moveable and breathable.
The jersey styles include dresses, skorts, tops and tanks in mix and match patterns. Spartina took measures to make the colors coordinate thus making pieces interchangeable. And when traveling or in a quick need for a fashion-forward daytime look the options available are quite handy for quick decisions.
The collection’s colors flow in consistent shades from collars to skirts to scarves. The patterns are interchangeable from piece to piece and these colors and patterns flow right down to the line’s accessories. Spartina 449’s timeless patterns make for timeless looks.
It is also fun to dress a family of Spartina women. The looks from the collection are multi-generational and work especially well for that vacation portrait on the beach or for an early evening walking the harbor hand in hand, with the pieces blending so beautifully against the boats and ocean hues.
The collection also includes ponchos and kaftans crafted with delicate and colorful embroidery. These dressing pieces are also constructed of natural fabrics of linen and cotton blend – keeping them wrinkle-free. Poolside parties are a perfect place to showcase your Spartina 449 kaftan and, when you add some heels, it can go straight to cocktails by the sea.
If you want to add some style to your hairstyle, wrap a coordinating scarf around your head…and crank up your convertible! You can also flow it around your neck to add the colorful pop of an extra pattern to your look. Layering on some beautiful stone necklaces when taking in an early dinner with your husband or a new friend is another option. Of course, always bring along your linen and leather Spartina purse or poolside beach bag to make your outfit complete.
Stop by the Spartina stores to get your spring looks or shop the collection online. And when you do, know that your purchases benefit a great cause. Since its start, a portion of every Spartina 449 sale goes towards the Daufuskie Island Historical Foundation.
The Spartina woman is now completely dressed for living her casual and fun-filled life…from clothing to accessories. Spartina 449 girls just want to have fun!
Photos: Courtesy of Spartina 449
After sharing my “Living the Dream in 2019” article in January, I realized something was missing in my “6P” formula for making a dream come true. Why do we seek change, or something new to do, or even a problem to solve? Why do we wake up one day and say, “This way of living is not fitting how I want to live today!”
Part of my personal life transition included asking myself frank questions like these. And, as I sat one sunny day in my glass-lined office, the answer came to me as I gazed out the window. I became inspired and quickly jotted down what became one of my first short poems:
In corner of my eye
Came gliding by
A glimpse from the sky
Oh, how freely the eagle danced
Weaving in and out of the steel window slants
A reminder to my soul
To balance my goals
For the freedom is given to all living creatures
To soar high above living in just functions and features
And live their greatest life.
While I realize this isn’t earth-shattering prose, the words were now coming from my head and into my hand. I also came to the realization that the ambitious side of my personality had started to wind down after years of competing, building and growing both my career, marriage and business. I was starting to shift in life and even in purpose. As my mind was seeking daily inspiration, a profound film by Dr. Wayne Dyer caught my eye titled “The Shift”.
Dr. Dyer states, “The Shift — illustrates how and why to make the move from ambition to meaning. Such a shift eliminates our feelings of separateness, illuminates our spiritual connectedness, and involves moving from the ego-directed morning into the afternoon of life where everything is primarily influenced by purpose.
As we contemplate leaving the morning of our life, where ego has played a commanding role, and entering the afternoon (and evening), where meaning and purpose replace ambition and struggle, we may encounter unexpected occurrences that accompany this new direction.”
My life needed more meaning and less material things and business accomplishments.
As Dr. Dyer’s movie illustrates, some people shift earlier than others and some never even do. His movie is now streaming for free on You Tube and I highly recommend watching it for inspiration.
So…drum roll…I SHIFTED! While I still physically was able, I began my journey of becoming a creative. I made a very bold move and gave my notice to the firm which had co-founded. And, my life as I knew it had ended.
It was a good life. It was a thrill to build an innovative and groundbreaking firm which took many years of personal sacrifice to achieve – but it was ultimately not my life calling or ultimate purpose. It was my partner’s – and he still enjoys it.
Dr. Dyer mentioned a Turkish proverb that inspired his writing of the Shift concept:
“No matter how far you have gone on a wrong road, turn back.”
Even though I was long way down the road of life at 50 years old, I still felt had the time to turn back – to find my purpose. And that is when I realized another P must be added to the formula – Purpose.
So, how do you find your purpose? Purpose is a top sought-after goal in life for many as I have discussed above – but many times, it is the most difficult thing to figure out.
One way is maybe listen to audiobooks, read articles and books, and surf the web. I did, plus, viewed spiritual TV programs when initially starting to write up drafts on Purpose – the 7th P. But even to this day after much research, it still eludes me as to what to say about how to find it. That is why I have never published any articles or blogs on Purpose. I am still in awe of this purposeful journey that one takes.
I think I’m awestruck maybe because it is more of a “personal” and many times “spiritual” journey. You must ask yourself deep within – and maybe seek some divine inspiration. I was listening to a “Soulful Sunday” piece with Oprah Winfrey recently. She had a Benedictine monk on her series and asked how he felt one could find his or her purpose.
He said start by asking yourself what you DO NOT want to do!
So, my shift took the form of living the life of a creative from that of a business one. I got accepted at SCAD in graduate design studies and began my journey of being more of an artist over a business woman. It was cool at 50 to go back to school at a highly regarded art institute. My design classes were held in a warehouse with cool vibes and creative class topics. And to play the role, I changed my wardrobe from business suits to jeans and funky tops. I also began to reduce my living footprint to allow for more freedom, reduce my responsibilities, and to explore new avenues and adventures.
By then, writing had become the most intriguing and interesting potential adventure, but I also got hooked on social media while at SCAD. It is the future of so many things.
Some of this story is a about me. But I think it is good to offer an example of a personal journey – like in school – a case study. And a story of someone who dared to – Shift.
I lost a lot initially when shifting. It was frightening at times, but also so freeing and exhilarating. And life had taught me some hard lessons in my 50 years, so I was not too naïve. Life is a gamble…you must take into consideration all the angles.
My reason to write this article is for you to consider your Purpose in life when living the dream in 2019. You may be living it and blessed in doing so. But sometimes, we get so busy just living our lives day-to-day that we fail to take the time to check in with just why we are living a certain way. We are existing much like my poem – living to function and just enjoying the features that immediately surround us. We can begin to live in a bubble. That is not really a bad thing, as it brings security, routine and predictability…just make sure it is your bubble and you’re not living in someone else’s. Or, maybe it is time to burst it and explore for a while.
When searching deep within for your Purpose, you might also reach out for insights into how it may come true. I suggest watching “The Shift” movie as maybe a starting point. Or you can seek out top experts in your field either in print or in person.
So maybe today, begin to think of what you don’t want to do…it might help start guiding your on Living your Dream in 2019 — and with a Purpose.
I lived a good life — it had just shifted in purpose and, just needed to turn back as the Turkish proverb states.
My desire was to end my life on a different path – a road less traveled.
And down the Road of Purpose – Relax, Reflect and Recharge!
Resort Girl enchants the adventurous souls who dream of far-away places, relaxing but recharging experiences, and words of wisdom to reflect upon -Wanderers who are on an ongoing journey, exploring their physical and mental abilities while enjoying and living gracefully with nature.
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