10 Significant Moments of 2019
Not all moments of our life are beautiful and perfect and filled with joy - but many of them are the moments that we will remember forever. They have the ability to change the course of our lives and our hearts. They are pivotal or small or picture-perfect or fleeting. But their essence lingers in our lives and minds.
These are the moments that lingered. That changed me. That taught me. That defined me.
These are 10 moments of significance from 2019, in no particular order.
Adding Laszlo to our family.
You likely know and agree with the joy and unforgetfulness of adding a dog to your life. But we didn't. We were those people who judged others for how they treated their pets. We could see no way that an animal would fit into our lifestyle. But for the past two years, the idea has been slowly creeping into my mind as I’ve been so lonely in our current home. But then, the responsibility, the amount we travel, would creep in and I would quickly dismiss the idea. Then, a random day over the summer we started to talk about the idea of getting a dog. Somehow Terrell was on board and that was all it took for us to dive into the rabbit hole of researching breeds. Within a day we had found what we thought was perfect for us: hypo-allergenic, adorable, apartment sized, smart, friendly, fun: a mini golden doodle.
But, we quickly realized that these ‘don't exist’ in the middle east and no one was able/willing to ship them in as they don’t like mixed breeds. So we went back to the drawing board and ended up with a mini poodle as our best option. We were so nervous about poodles because of all the bad publicity they get for being difficult and ridiculous looking. But, we were determined and committed to this idea and fell in love with those tiny faces and we were literally wishing time away to when our little bestie would arrive.
The story of his first few days with us involves a lot of drama and tears and hospital visits - which is when I knew we were utterly smitten and loved this little floof more than anything else in our lives. Adding this guy to our family has been the most joyful and fun and overwhelming thing we have experienced. We can’t wait to do all the new and fun things with him. Seeing how excited he is to see us after we leave the room for just 5 minutes, watching him run and play, his top-notch snuggles, seeing him learn new things - it's just the literal best. By far, our #1 part of 2019!
Traveling to Iceland/Greenland, Singapore/Indonesia, Argentina/Chile
Ok, so I know these are a lot of places but they had a few things in common: the outdoors. Never are we happier than when we are camping, road tripping, hiking, exploring, picnicking and breathing fresh air.
In Iceland and Argentina/Chile we rented camper vans and explored some of the craziest, most extreme places on earth. We went with friends to Iceland and that upped the fun. We finally returned back to my beloved Asia and had a week on a small island in Indonesia (hint hint: there may be a Radiant Art Retreat happening there in 2020!!) with no wifi and nothing but the ocean and a book. The other half of the week we explored Singapore. We rode the subway, drank so much bubble tea, saw beautiful gardens, explored crazy buildings, hunted down colorful alleyways and ate so many dumplings. Nothing makes my heart happier than exploring and eating in Asia.
These trips all also collided with big events happening in our personal lives. We were able to process through and make big decisions while we were here, which added to their significance. Again, it’s not necessarily a moment or event that makes a top 10 list, but the feelings and importance it represents and provides.
Leaving Get Messy
This was one of the biggest and most defining choices of the past many years of my life. It was the hardest one I’d made in a very very long time. It was sad and painful and difficult and I felt torn and was told I was making such a mistake. But I knew it was my next right step. I am so grateful for all that season of my life brought - but even good things must come to an end. Which leads me to…
Starting Radiant Art Retreats
About a year and a half ago I was restless and lonely and had a vision. A room filled with light, overlooking the ocean, filled with art supplies and artists. I proceeded to bring this vision to life with the first retreat, then called Get Messy Art Retreats.
But all it did was solidify the restlessness: this was the new direction I was being called to follow. After leaving Get messy so I could focus solely on creative retreats and workshops I planned to spend the summer not working but resting and exploring what new visions I had for my business, but Camellia Palms reached out and asked me to partner with them for a retreat and I could not turn down the opportunity to sit on the deck of that historic home with a pink door and create. The first RAR exceeded the expectations my heart had set on it (which were already crazy high) and I knew - KNEW - that this was right for me.
Friendship + Creative Expansion
Amy. Yep, just Amy. Kidding - kind of. As I said, this is not a list of 10 specific moments but of things that were monumental this year.
My friend Amy, you guys know her (she took these gorgeous photos of us, was on the podcast, she’s the featured artist at the aforementioned RAR, and we travel and post together constantly) is such a force of creativity and kindness and hilarity to be reckoned with. This year she not only supported me through her amazing friendship, but she taught me something big about myself. I have a tremendous capacity to expand my creativity and skills. She flew me to Germany to be her second shooter for the most beautiful military/bavarian wedding. It was the biggest crash course in photography, weddings, and painful feet I have ever experienced. She patiently and kindly coached me every step of the way and no one was more floored than I was at the quality and beauty of a (small) handful of images I was able to capture that day. She also came to visit me, leaving her 6 (6!) Kids at home and using her time to see me and have so much fun with me was just the greatest honor. We just spent Christmas with her family in Germany and it was my favorite holiday of all time. Friendship yall.
Starting Therapy
You’re like ok yeah this is not a brag list - I see that now. Thank you. My anxiety has been slowly but aggressively creeping up on my the past few years and it was time I turned around and faced that beast. I used BetterHelp - their service is crazy affordable and so so so easy to use, especially for ex-pats - and my therapist pretty much put my life and fears in perspective for me on a weekly basis and I can not thank her enough for supporting me in one of the hardest times of my life.
Ps. Use this link for a free week to give yourself a powerful gift in 2020!
Imperfect Boss Camp
Ashley is such a rockstar, but a humble one. The kind that you just want to sit near, to be in her presence and maybe soak in some of that awesomeness and maybe even have it shine on you for a moment if you're lucky. Ashley asked me to come to camp and help lead the creative sessions and do a live painting - but I would get to participate in all of camp as a normal camper. I was honored and thrilled.
I flew up to Canada, nearly froze to death and made some of the greatest friends. I was surrounded by beauty, the kindest and most honest souls, challenged in a new depth of how I show up and how I share my business and life and why. The friendships I walked away have jumpstarted so many shifts in my life and business and I am ever so grateful for every minute of camp. And that live painting - same as with the wedding - it showed me I am capable of much bigger and bolder creative moves in this life. I intend to lean into them and find some more.
My sister came to visit
My sister came to Dubai for a week! I was floored when she said she wanted to travel all by herself and come over. Each day was better than the last and I am forever grateful that she chose to come see our life and spend her time and money with us. There's nothing that bonds you like travel and sharing life on a deeper level with those you love.
Deciding to leave the UAE
Again, a weird one. We’ve been on the fence, feeling not quite settled but not sure of what’s next for the past two years and we finally had to choose - and we chose to leap.
We have no plans and no idea or direction of where we will be next year or what we’ll do. But we know it’s time to leap and having at least made that decision was a giant burden lifted and has given me so much peace and excitement, purpose and clarity as we make decisions for the future and how we use our time for the next 6 months.
The How She Creates Good Series
This!! This is the ultimate for me. Part of moving into a new business was to be able to enact my mission statement: I explore the intersection of creativity, travel, and GOOD.
Starting this series was the first step towards that - even when I didn’t know that’s what it even was. I started this series because I was curious about how I could use my creativity to create good in the world and so I reached out to people who were doing this to see if I could pick their brains and learn from them. This series has given me so much motivation, purpose, tangible evidence, and challenges to use creativity to create good in the world.
I am so honored to be able to also use it as a platform to encourage others to create good and to promote, support, and celebrate women who are already doing this so well.
There you have it. The 10 most pivotal moments of 2019. Some small, some giant, some gradual, some will have a delayed reaction. All important and written in my heart.
What were your most pivotal moments of the past year?
Make a list! Tell me! Tell no one. Meditate on them, thank them, learn from them and celebrate them.
If you want to do a deep dive into your year based on your values and heart, not goals + accomplishments, listen to this podcast episode where I share a series of journaling prompts to help you reflect and plan with intention.