Acceptance. When enough is enough.

"I always have an existential crisis in my third week of a new adventure."  I laughed aloud when I read this text from a good friend.  It's one reason we have good friends right?  To help us put things in perspective.

Last week was my third week here in Haiti and I was indeed full of doubt. As I got comfortable with my routine of life here, I began to wonder if I am 'doing enough'.  

This week that seems silly.  Of course it is enough that I am living in Haiti, getting myself to the yoga studio every day to share ideas, work with great people, and teach 5 classes a week.  Yes this is enough for now. Enough is simply enough.

I have grand visions of writing articles, doing community outreach and employee wellness programs in Haiti, and last week I started worrying that I wasn't doing enough to work toward that vision.

As a typical over-acheiver type I was beating myself up over it.

Luckily, I have a mindfulness practice that let me see myself beating myself up, and I checked in with it. I asked where the feeling of "not enough" was coming from. (I also work with a lovely life coach Cora of Sexy Soul Wellness who helped me delve deeper into this.)

I realized that the part of me wants to 'do more' is my ego that wants to tell great stories and be recognized for great achievements during my time here.  As I looked closer at that, I realized that a more important part of me, my center, my soul, is not ready to do more and has a different agenda.

One of my favorite Rumi quotes is, "The soul is here for its own joy."  The joy my soul currently seeks is one of healing and establishing a strong base for a fire that can burn powerfully.

Yes, I want to accomplish great things and I want to be recognized for the work I do. But I am ready for once in my life to accept that enough is enough and that I can take my time to build something with a solid foundation.  If I focus on accepting what I am willing and eager to do now, and let enough be enough- then I am sure that great things will follow.

With love and acceptance, Lizandra

Credit for the photo goes to my good friend and fellow sojourner on the journey of the dance between acceptance and drive - Kristin Adair.

What am I doing and why am I doing it?

What am I doing and why am I doing it? This is a question that has been on my mind this week.

When I arrived in Haiti my intention for being here was: "Here deepening my understanding of my own journey and learning about life in Haiti. Doing my best to live everyday On Purpose."

Today that doesn't feel like enough. I am not sure why.   This past week I've had a sense of a need to do more. Maybe I just need to do more focused 'learning about life in Haiti".

Or maybe I need to check-in with my bigger intentions and purpose.  Check-in with what it is that I want in life and what I am doing to help that to be.  Finally, check-in with what doesn't feel like enough and why.

This week in my classes at Project Zen I am focusing on sharing thoughts around Intention and today I wrote a Project Zen blog post about it.  You can read the post here. 

I really do need to take a step back and check in with myself, my intentions and my purpose.  Do you have an intention that drives your purpose every day? Please share!

Honoring Tragedy and Compassion

January 12, 2013 

Three years ago today devastation hit Haiti in the form of an 7.0 earthquake that shook the very foundation of the country.  Well over 250,000 people were killed, tens of thousands more were injured, and the survivors were left with the traumatic impact of the disaster.

Three years ago today the world came together in response.  It is estimated that half of all American households donated money to the relief efforts.   Over 40 countries responded with disaster relief assistance.

Stop for a moment to think about that: More people gave to the Haitian relief efforts than voted in the 2012 Presidential election.  More countries responded to the relief efforts than any other disaster. 

And so out of the devastation came compassion and hope.

You might want to ask if those millions of people who gave money three years ago are still thinking of the people in Haiti today on the 3-year anniversary of the tragedy. You might want ask what has been done with all of the money donated and efforts by so many countries.

Me, today I don't care much about those things.

I care most that there was a monumental historic disaster and millions of people responded from around the globe. I care that the world opened its heart to Haiti and offered what they could.   When the world shows compassion writ large, it is something to honored and acknowledged.

Today was not a time to ask questions about what happened to the money or what is being done in Haiti right now.  Today was a day to honor those that died, those that survived and those who responded. Today, 3 years later let's honor the pain and the caring love that poured in from all around the world.

Yes the earthquake is what drew me to come here in 2010. I came to bear witness to something that I couldn't comprehend just by reading the news. But me being here On Purpose is not about relief, or serving less fortunate.

Me being here On Purpose is about honoring the strength and resilience of the Haitian people and offering interested people opportunities for health and wellness.

Our Project Zen yoga studio was open today and I taught a yoga class today at Noon. We offered our practice to honor the fallen and the survivors and to compassion and hope.

My 2013 Mantra: Fire!

Every year since 2008 I've chosen a single word mantra to help me focus on my personal work for the year.

Past mantra's have been: serenity, kindness, havefun, love, compassion. 

I love looking at each of these words and associating them with the personal work I've done over the years.  The past five years have largely been about learning to be nicer to myself and people around me.

An important part of my process has been working to remember that we are all simply doing the best we can with what we have. To make peace with that.  To accept what is for exactly what it is.

I have come far in that journey, these concepts have become a deep part of how I see and move through the world. Now it's time to turn the page.  To start a new chapter.

My 2013 mantra is: Fire!

This year is about stepping it up and tending the Fire! of my passion to share mindfulness and healthy lifestyle choices with as many people as possible.

The journey starts here in Haiti. Over the next two months I'll tend my own fire of mindfulness and wellness and explore the best ways to share it with others.  I'll start with teaching 5 yoga classes a week at Project Zen, doing healthy lifestyle coaching sessions, and learning about what mindfulness, health and wellness looks like for people here in Haiti.

The sunrise pictured is the Fire! vision I start each day with here in Haiti.  Much love and adoration to anyone reading this and sharing in my journey of being in Haiti on Purpose.