Hello my friend,
I have only just 36 hours ago returned from the most incredible 6 weeks away. I can barely capture the trip and the experiences so I wanted to within this email share with you some of my most lovely takeaways and also share some things I’ve been coming across for you to also enjoy.
An exploration of the world and gratitude…
DUBAI
I was so immensely thankful for our family. We stayed with Arran’s sister Letetia and her family and the care and generosity was deep. Our daughter Marley also flew solo from Paris to Dubai to spend two life changing weeks with her little hilarious cousins. It made me appreciate how lucky we are to have family on both sides we all adore. It’s certainly a rarity.
LONDON
We had two trips to London, basing ourselves in Notting Hill and then Shoreditch. It was my first trip to London, and my goodness, I adored it. The city, the people, the culture, the diversity I completely soaked in. I am grateful for early morning (4am) moments in the garden with Marley with butterflies and squirrels and a small amount of small person jet lag spent lounging in nature. Our London students were something else. They brought a degree of freshness and enthusiasm that was so invigorating. I’m also permanently altered from a day Arran and I had in East London, at White Chapel Gallery spending a long time poring through the exhibitions, cafe and their bookstore, and then a meal we had at Lyells. I was so inspired I thought I was going to burst out of my skin. Which is always a mood that is incredibly exhausting for poor Arran!
PARIS
There was so much to this trip. Our friend Clara I am so very grateful for, as she patiently involved and explained to Marley so much of Paris’ architecture, design and geography. I will never forget a giant raspberry macaron we ate at a cafe. And I’m very grateful Marley and I had mornings, the two of us, to sit street side in traditional Parisian cafes, eating baguettes with jam and butter, croissants and drinking coffee and for hours watching the world go by and chatting. It was one of those very special times.
SPAIN
Arran and I were ‘officially’ on holidays which still means checking emails and attending to bits and pieces but in essence we were on vacation. And vacation we did. We adored exploring Barcelona, and had so many incredible meals. We traveled North to the border of France and stayed in a tiny seaside town. We swam on pebbly beaches and ate seafood on the beach. We stayed on a yacht in Ibiza and sailed to Formentera. I mean, it was insanely fun. A few key things stood out that made my heart sing with gratitude. To be in a relationship so aligned in every way, where walking streets, eating out, lying on beaches, every activity entails such fun, and such grace. I’m grateful for our friends, whose wedding I cried at so many times. For the friends who let us crash their villa pre-wedding to wash our hair. Little yachts and wedding prep don’t go together. Sleeping under the full moon for Guru Purnima in the waters of the Baeleric Islands on the deck of the yacht. The sea breeze, the lit up sky and the enormity of the universe so ve ry large. Needless to say I didn’t sleep much that night in excitement and also the moon was like sleeping under a floodlight. We said no to nothing. Whether that was unusual food, a glass of biodynamic wine in the middle of the day, sunset boat rides, swimming in the greenest of water on waking literally diving straight off the boat, siesta’s or at one point being too overwhelmed to do anything but lie inside, stretched out under air conditioning on fresh linen sheets.
USA
I then traveled a slightly torturous 26 hour boat, plane, taxi, stop, repeat extravaganza after 4 hours sleep on the yacht to meet Jeff Kober and his wife Adele and attend a Retreat with teacher Sri M set amongst the redwoods in Northern California. I walked straight in from a 2 hour car ride direct from the airport into a lecture. Lucky for me Sri M is so funny and engaging that I could release the past. The majestic trees I breathed in deeply at every moment, immersing myself into Sri M’s teachings and just in general pottering around with Jeff and Adele. In the breaks coconut ice-cream affogato’s in the sweltering heat, and snacking on dried apricots and fresh cherries. These moments are forged into my memory. Then LA was a continuation of the amazing time we always have there. I was solo now, staying here and there. I’m grateful for all our wonderful friends and students. For their enthusiasm, creativity and joy in living full lives. I taught two courses in meditation, each a delight and surprising me in different ways. I spent time with Jeff as he undertook the Course in Vedic Knowledge Part 4 live streamed to Australia. I’m grateful for his vulnerability, pretend grumpiness and then seeing him in absolute flow. I love our little chats in between each session while his cats swirl around our ankles, the wind chimes twinkle and we snack. My god, we endlessly snack and drink coffee when together. It seems one of us is always presenting a little lovely something to eat or making something hot to drink to go with an interesting thought or concept.
PALM BEACH
I am supremely grateful that somehow after 6 weeks away and more planes and taxis and trains than should be possible I never had jet lag. For this I have my meditation practice and my constitution to thank. But in essence it feels like something of a miracle. I am so happy I returned home to no friction. Just ease. Returning with 70 kilo’s of luggage and a reasonably gross 14 hour flight and Australian customs a day after a plane bomb threat, can really push oneself. And then there’s settling back into home life. Sometimes I feel like an outsider settling into my very own family. It’s the oddest experience. This return home though has been nothing but sweetness. And no frantic I can’t be away from my loves feeling. Just straight back into life in Sydney with all its wonders. The trees are very bare. The air very cold at 4.30am. I’m grateful for LA timezones/my body clock, and the ability to wake so very early to begin my morning tea, fire, reading, yoga, meditation then walk sequence Arran and I do together. The sea is thick with cold, and it blows off the ocean all over me when walking. I missed the wild cockatoos that visit, who came to say hello this morning. I missed Honey until she rolled her whole back in possum poo and then lay on the lounge. I am grateful for planned evenings of delicious home cooked meals enjoyed outside by the fire in our garden this week…
And some inspiration if you need it…
WATCH
This beautiful little film created by our friend Emily at Bodha Modern Wellness. Em’s bravery in taking on this project, and the creativity and sweat and the huge team it takes to create a short video inspired me immensely. Watch it here.
READ
Apprenticed To A Himalayan Master here.
COOK
Our friend Jacq Alwill created this amazing Mushroom Broth With Brown Rice Recipe, and we get the most amazing feedback. Give it a try here.
With love,
Jac x