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Published: March 18th 2013
Falls and Flying
Elysabeth and I playing for the first time in the falls. Isn't she beautiful?! My journey has begun, bringing me to an enormous porch that overlooks about 400 acres of Middle Tennessee’s backcountry. Hohenwald to be exact: the name itself is a German word for “high forest.”
Anna and I spent the morning swinging in a two-person hammock listening to the wind ignite enormous, aluminum wind chimes and whisper through the wintered branches of the trees. As we find ourselves on the porch yet again, not a single cloud litters the blue sky and the sun seems to reach every crevice of the property. Double doors stand open making the common room of the lodge feel like an expansion of the porch. The lodge has been erected from logs, cedar, and strategically shaped and placed windows. Salt lamps, string lights, drapes of East Asian fabrics, blankets, sitting pillows and yoga mats fill the space. The ambiance subtly equates to the atmosphere of a westernized Buddhist temple. This place is the Gray Bear Lodge.
Almost two short weeks ago I left my home in Anchorage. I gave up an apartment that had been my safe zone, my haven, and the first real place of my own. I let go of
all of my unnecessary belongings such as my decorations, furniture, appliances, clothes, skis, piano, bicycle, and so on. I sold my dependable, reliable Alaskan car. I quit my professional, stable and personally rewarding job. Hardest of all, I parted with the people in my life who have grown with me, encouraged my creativity and crazy randomness, have hiked mountains and fished rivers with me, and who became my family.
I moved to Alaska to find myself on my own terms. It has become my home and will always be my home. I crave the adventures of skiing, ice-skating, aurora hunting, and dark nights of winters as much as I crave the hiking, fishing, rugby, camping and long days of summer. But in this time I slowly became comfortable and settled; my days became routine; my obligations held me accountable to a lifestyle that began to feel like shackles. I could slowly felt my mind becoming still and unchallenged; my heart becoming numb; my creativity suffocated and uninspired. The constant routine was literally burning the life out of me. I had to break free and let go. We are each responsible for setting our doubts and fears aside
if we truly want to achieve something. I chose to embrace that challenge.
My first stop was Knoxville, Tennessee where I spent more than a week visiting close friends and family. I spent that time sleeping in unfamiliar beds, on various couches, and even on a floor. As I am becoming acclimated to the constant shifting and moving around and am having to consciously force myself to be in the moment and take it slowly. As this new phase of my life begins, I decided it was the perfect time to take a weekend and reconnect with myself and to regain clarity, peace of mind, and purpose. So Friday morning I bought an old Toyota Corolla left Knoxville and drove four and half hours west. Though there were noises and funny smells towards the end, the car and I made it just in time for a weekend long yoga retreat at the Gray Bear Lodge.
I arrived just in time for dinner which was followed by the opening circle and then an intro partner yoga session. We participated in the morning mediation at 7:30am in spirit by sleeping in an extra 30 minutes. We
Acro Jam!
Anna, Angela, and I: Spreading the love of Acro with two people I love very much! took a break from yoga in the afternoon and went on a short ride in the back of a pick up truck and then on a two hour hike out to a waterfall. Here I approached Elysabeth, the guest partner yoga teacher for the first time and talked her into doing some Acro yoga at the base of the waterfall (I had looked through her book right before and noticed she had a few sections on flying). The base of the fall was very slippery with the wet pools of moss, but she said she would trust me. The rocks grasped the frame of my back and I was strong and solid as she flew. So there, at the base of waterfall we played. It was my first acro experience outside and it was invigorating.
Now the day is closing and I am sitting on the porch once again wondering where this adventure will lead me. I have tentative plans in place but anticipate that my life will be anything but planned over these next few years and I couldn't be more happy about that.
Thank you for being a part of this journey!
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Kelley
non-member comment
Good to see!
All looks well. Glad to be a part of your adventures!