A personal lil’ update from me. It’s a warm quiet morning here in Bai, and I’m Currently sitting at my fav cafe. I’m reflecting and feeling life a little bit extra today. Noticing the smells, the smiles, the colors, the signs, the small things. Simply noticing the beauty of life. I guess it’s the result when I finally slow down after a busy period. Seems almost as if all the rush had blurred the joy of being here, but now everything makes more sense. Insights are popping up, feelings get deeper, and the clarity within me grows.
Right now, I’m in a period of questioning a lot. I feel a need to re-create my everyday life. I’ll be honest with you, lately I had a hard time feeling at peace. That inner peace that is so grounding, comforting, and just lovely to feel. I felt stuck in a work-mode, a do-mode where the days were mainly formed by my to-do list. My mind was turned ON almost all the time, and it was so hard to turn off at night.
I found it hard to turn off the busyness, the planning, the fixing, the doing. The stillness, the joy of being, the inner quietness suddenly felt so far away. That inner peace that I usually can tap into, felt so distant. And that scared me.
I realized that I had gone all in (once again) with the masculine energy. It started as a nice vibe, doing a lot of fun things, creative work, activities that fulfill me, a rich social life etc. But for me, it so easily tips over and just becomes too much. Everything feels just like a checklist, even tho there are meaningful things. It really dawned on me, and I craved to just pause. Pause everything, zoom out, and observe my emotions - my needs.
From reflections, I could see what happened. I had lost my work-life balance. The hard part for me here is that my work feels so fulfilling and fun, but I will never feel that I’m done. There are always things to do when you run two companies. So it’s hard to “leave work”, when my work is an extension of myself. It just got so clear that the work-mode and free-time blurred into each other, and suddenly everything felt run by work.
I craved a structure, where I can shift from work to rest, from masculine energy to feminine energy, from doing to being. Where there’s space for lust, for stillness, for fun.
This caused two things, the first one being that I didn’t prioritize my rituals and soul care, and secondly I got too serious about life. I lost the easy-going play with life.
Since I’m the creator of my life, it’s a bit sad that I’m the one who created this unbalance and inner stress, but the beauty is that I’m also the one holding the power to change it.
Change my small habits, create a better structure, prioritize my soul’s desires.
One thing that I craved was contrasts. To break our daily routine, and I longed for one of my fav things - a retreat. So we did! We went to Sri Lanka, and checked in to Sunshine Stories, which is a surf & yoga retreat. It was so damn well-needed. Break habits, and ease into the beautiful retreat flow.
Every morning we started with yoga in the shala. Waking the bodies by a guided Vinyasa flow, surrounded by jungle, breathing in the sunrise mist, listening to the monkeys' sweet conversations. 7am, leaving with softer bodies, feeling the warmth of the sun, and the smell of a delicious breakfast.
There was always a big plate with colorful fresh fruits, together with either coconut chia pud, pancakes, or avo toast. And lots of coffee. Fueling and prepping for the surf session starting at 8am. With bikinis and board shorts on, zink all over the face, water bottles filled, we jumped into the tuk tuks, which were loaded with our board on the roof.
Chasing for the best waves of the day, it was so inspiring to see the passion through the surf coach's eyes. The joy when they saw beautiful peelers rolling in that turquoise water. They shared their knowledge, tips, and ocean wisdom before we jumped into the water. I was shocked every time by how warm the water was, entering the sea was like a warm healing hug from Mama Earth. We paddled, catched waves, failed, laughed, wiped out, hyped each other, and simply shared the joy of surfing. After two hours of play, we headed back to the beautiful villa to re-set ourselves.
The chef Dinu prepared a fulfilling lunch, and meanwhile we often chilled in the backyard. Laying under the palm trees, sipping on cold coconuts, just enjoying the retreat life. After lunch we had surf theory and video analysis sessions, and that was truly a game changer! It was absolutely super awkward to get captured on film when you’re doing all possible fails, but WOW, I learned SO much. Getting your surf observed and analyzed by a passionate pro, giving you feedback and tips are so so valuable. I honestly learned more during my two weeks at Sunshine than what I did during the full previous year.
In the afternoon there was always a vibey tea time with fruits and cookies or brownies. And we could also choose between a slow yin yoga class or just alone time. Reading books, napping, shopping, whatever you felt you wanted and needed..
The days where wrapped up in a lot of different ways, everything from going out for sunset and cocktails, to a pizza night with music quiz at home. One thing that each night had in common tho was 100% good vibes. Getting to know new people, trying new foods, and sharing stories that inspire each other.
This on repeat, for two weeks. I think you can tell that this really refilled my energy bucket. We just left the dreamy surfcamp life at Sunshine Stories, which is just a bubble of bliss. And honestly I already miss it haha, but I feel so grateful for this experience and all it brought me. I checked out feeling inspired, calm, and ready to invite new insights to my everyday life.
Back to the Island of gods - Bali. Applying my insights, creating and exploring a new way of working and living. Doing my best to create more time for stillness, keep a playful attitude towards life. Let's remind ourselves that life is too important to get too serious about.
And let’s drop down to our hearts, feel what really matters, and respond to that inner voice. Separate what’s urgent and what’s just mind-made stress, and enjoy this beautiful life. We are here, alive, that’s a luxury itself. I will do my best to enjoy it a little bit extra.
Guys, I don’t know what happened, Christmas is NEXT week?! So I guess I have one thing left to say - Merry Christmas sweethearts! If you read this far, wow you are a true star. Thank you for being a part of Souli. I’m so excited to share another year with you.
With love, Lisa