The Vision Quest Chronicles: Tales of Living One's Vision

working on the Vision Quest Chronicle

On 6.29.09 I wrote…

I have run away from home to focus on my Vision… so for about the next 7 days I will be chronicling my self imposed Vision Quest Retreat.  My agenda? 1) follow my instincts,  2) work on the curriculum for the upcoming Vision Quest Retreats being launched in the next year, 3) finish writing the story of how I came to be living my Vision for the book, 4) be in the moment, enjoy, chill, and record it all on this blog, twitter, and in my private travel journal.

Today is day 6 of my adventure and I feel the need for a quick inventory on the above agenda items. Re:

1) Following my instincts-Doing pretty good w/ this when I stay in the moment. On this trip this consists of being true to myself & doing the next right thing i.e. resting, eating & exercising when I should.

2) Working on the curriculum for the upcoming Vision Quest Retreats-paying attention to the elements on my own personal Vision Quest Retreat that are helping me to get quiet & clarify and gain inspiration for my own Vision. Yoga, unstructured alone time, a place away from “work”, the right atmosphere, all musts.  Have not actually written out curriculum, but plan to do a draft before I go.  

3) Finish writing the story of how I came to be living my Vision for the book-no movement on this except in my mind and minimal at that

4) Being in the moment, enjoying & chilling- not doing badly but…finding it a real challenge to be completely present at all times and not flying off into my head to daydream, plan & envision future.  Not sure it is possible to stay in present at all times…my yoga practice is a big help…did have a consciously slowed down morning and that helps too. Enjoying and Chilling…doing really well at that! Perhaps my forte (Of course being on an island retreat in a fabulous villa makes all of the above easier to achieve). Surprised to observe that even here I can be in a rush to get to the next adventure, thing or accomplishment.  More slowing down to do…am going to practice this more today & pay attention to the results.

5) Recording it all on blog, twitter, & private travel journal-Doing as well as I can.  As always it is a challenge to record it all.  As much as I am writing there is still so much more…hard to write & live it all in a 24 hr period! Sometimes feels like a table with jewels & other treasures spilling all over the place and I am struggling to catch and hold it all.  Have to find a balance…maybe not possible…no matter. Can always just revel and enjoy the transient nature of life and all the experiences we have on the planet.

I will report results on all the above in an upcoming post. As always would love an update from you on the state of living your Vision. Please drop me a line when you can.

(first posted 7.2.09)

the view from my room

…awoke to golden sunlight streaming in the window.  Light quick breakfast then piled in the open taxi with the gang…headed to the dock…boarded a boat and set off. Surrounded by every shade of blue imaginable.  Struck by the thought of painting…recorded the colors in my mind, wished I could capture the feeling of wind on my face and the salty spray cooling my skin.  A day of island hopping.  A trip through the bathes on Virgin Gorda…snorkeling among the gigantic boulders.  Treated to seeing some squid with their iridescent dots of light…huge fish…good enough to eat.  The next island…lunch, chicken roti with mango chutney…yum.  Final stop anchored in a little bay to snorkel…hugged the rocky shore and found a little magic cave full of colorful rocks.  The current was too strong to enter the two foot opening.  I had to tread water outside and look in.  The inner sanctum of Mami Wata protected by the currents…but at least I could peer in if not enter.

Entirely too exhausted to write more tonight. Did some work-work tonight after roof top yoga and a sumptuous dinner. Want to get up early for a swim.  Looking forward to my dreams tonight. My body is still rocking from the day on the sea as I write this.

If you are a Woman (21 or older) and would like to take the Vision Quest Survey, please click 

Vision Quest Survey Report: as of today, 127 women have completed it! My Goal= 1000.

(first posted 7.1.09)

on a Vision Quest Retreat

Do we run from the present moment because reality is too much to bear? 

I have run away from home to focus on my Vision… so for about the next 7 days I will be chronicling my self imposed Vision Quest Retreat.  My agenda? 1) follow my instincts,  2) work on the curriculum for the upcoming Vision Quest Retreats, 3) finish writing the story of how I came to be living my Vision for the book, 4) be in the moment, enjoy, chill, and record it all on this blog, twitter, and in my private travel journal.

The highlight of this day so far was my morning swim. I arose at about 6:00, sat on the little verandah off my room to watch the sun come up over the mountains.  After she made her dramatic appearance bringing the day with her I decided to walk down the hill to the glassy bay for a swim.  The water was cool and refreshing as I pushed off from the shore. The plan was to swim along the shoreline to the end of the cove and back.  Within minutes I was caught up in a swarm of tiny silver minnows. I descended into their midst just to enjoy them.  It was like a rainstorm but the raindrops had been replaced by fish all moving and changing direction as if with one mind reacting to something I could not see.  Different numbers of them moved in different directions creating currents and every time they moved a burst of silver could be seen.  Of course my being there meant that I created a hole in the middle of this storm and they all kept a safe distance.  I was surrounded on all sides so I could turn slowly in the water and just watch them.  I felt or perhaps imagined that I was Mami Wata surrounded by my minions.  A silly perhaps, yet delightful thought to have.

Eventually I did continue my swim.  It felt good to exercise my body buoyed by the gentle water…no real agenda…just to move and breath and be present in the moment. Being in the moment…staying in the moment…always returning to the moment.  I realized the other day that there is so much in each moment.  Each and everymoment is pregnant with more than I can handle sometimes. Maybe that is our challenge with staying in the moment…maybe life just seems like too much sometime.  I will be paying attention to this over the next several days.  Paying attention to each moment to see how much I can take.  How much can I bear?

Vision Quest Survey Report: as of today, 127 women have completed it! My Goal= 1000. 

(first posted 6.29.09)

Do you have enough lovers in your life?

We all know about haters and as much as we hate to admit it we may have even been haters, but what about lovers? We don’t talk enough about them. In the world of visioning and creative visualization it is often suggested that you protect your Vision from those who would attempt to tear it or you down. Some refer to these evil forces as dream stealers others call them dream killers.

I have definitely encountered my fair share of haters in the pursuit of my Vision, but this blog post is dedicated to the Dream Lovers…those who support and encourage our Visions and dreams. During this project I have received a lot of love and support from women and men that I know and even people that I have never met. It is really amazing to me and I am very grateful for it. Every kind word or hearing from someone that what I am doing is helpful to them helps to keep me motivated and engaged. It really is awesome!

I wish I could wax a bit more poetic on this subject tonight but I am coming down with a cold (I am almost NEVER sick so you can imagine how thrilled I am about this.) so I wont go on now…but I just wanted to put this out there in the universe before slipping off to sleep (I hope!)

So…do you have enough lovers in your life?
(first posted 6.16.09)