A Note by Samantha Knies Gray
Photo by Tim Gray Photography
I never intended to make this a series of ‘Good Intentions’ letters to our community, but this year has me unintentionally looking at how to better live an intentional life that serves my business and family well. I’m going to try to not make this cheesy (bear with me here): Change is hard, but necessary, for growth. Just like the earth sheds layers during the fall and winter to come back to greener life in the spring, so must we.
I did shed a lot of bad habits over the winter, but I was recently hit with what can only be described as a round of just really bad luck in several aspects of my life. When I was finally able to come up for air, I realized that I still had a little shedding to do — funny enough, the same week that Mother Nature decided winter wasn’t quite over yet.
Over Easter weekend, we took our girls and niece on a short hike at Hemlock Cliffs next to the family farm. As we ended our hike and made our way back to the car, we couldn’t help but notice how incredibly happy and excited our mildly moody 12-year-old Kate was. She proclaimed, “I could do this EVERY DAY!” and spun in a circle. She was outside in nature and happier than she had been all winter.
So as I start thinking about summer break for those two little girls of mine (and my niece — I plan on stealing her away from my sister a lot this summer!), I’ve decided to definitely do some more shedding in order to grow brighter and bigger.
My hope is for all of us to shed the dependence on electronics for entertainment that we developed over the winter and spend as much time outside gardening, swimming, hiking, loving on our horses, and taking adventures.
I’m in the process of shedding unnecessary and stressful work from my schedule to spend time on the work I love (my work with you all!).
I’m shedding social media as my primary means of relationship development — I want more in-person contact with people. (looking at: yoga and meets at the farm, coffee chats, and hike invites!)
Things. We’re collectively shedding things from the house. I grew up poor and have a tendency to hang onto random stuff just in case. Those just-in-cases never come, and the stuff piles up and creates clutter in our spaces and minds. Recycling, donating, selling, and throwing things away is the name of our game this month.
Worrying about what others think of me. It’s none of my business, and takes up far too much brain space that could be spent on happier things.
The impossible standards I hold myself, too. It’s ok to mess up, to not be the best at well — anything in my case LOL — and to sometimes just straight up fail. We’re all just doing our best, right?
Is there anything you need to still shed from winter? Judgements? Anxieties? Things? Dependencies? Work? Stress? Can I help support you as you shed and grow? I’m here, available, and ready to support your intentions, growth, and wellness goals through movement and meditation, always.