(image via weheartit)

Your great mistake is to act the drama
as if you were alone. As if life
were a progressive and cunning crime
with no witness to the tiny hidden
transgressions. To feel abandoned is to deny
the intimacy of your surroundings. Surely,
even you, at times, have felt the grand array;
the swelling presence, and the chorus, crowding
out your solo voice. You must note
the way the soap dish enables you,
or the window latch grants you freedom.
Alertness is the hidden discipline of familiarity.
The stairs are your mentor of things
to come, the doors have always been there
to frighten you and invite you,
and the tiny speaker in the phone
is your dream-ladder to divinity.

Put down the weight of your aloneness and ease into
the conversation. The kettle is singing
even as it pours you a drink, the cooking pots
have left their arrogant aloofness and
seen the good in you at last. All the birds
and creatures of the world are unutterably
themselves. Everything is waiting for you.

- david whyte

last night, i had dinner at jyoti-bihanga, a sweet, little vegetarian restaurant in normal heights and one of my favorite places to eat in san diego. the staff is just about the friendliest you will find anywhere and every dish is consistently delicious.

(image via jennifershesaid)

one of the sweetest, most vibrant canadians i know is moving back to winnipeg this week, so we opted to spend saturday with friends lounging at the beach and grilling out on her rooftop deck, which she considers the best view in la jolla…and with good reason. my sunday followed with one of those rare 2-hour, life-altering naps that seems to be the answer for just about anything and everything.

i am not quite sure how i have been driving by this place on a weekly basis for the past year without notice, but LIV juice bar in hillcrest had me whistling a different tune after one sip of their green lemonade. it has become a daily ritual for me…alongside my customary chocolate treat.

farmer’s markets are extremely enticing this time of year, so i decided to spend last saturday morning in little italy leisurely drifting from booth to booth, discovering unique finds and gathering the most perfect produce, which morphed into a colorful feast later that night.

i kinda love spending my evenings with good company over delicious food…especially when the meal involves tomatillo sauce and talk of love. last night, i got my fix with some tasty tacos and beloved friends that sent me home satisfied.

i spent saturday afternoon moseying the streets of south park for the sheer pleasure of possibly stumbling upon the perfect piece of art for my home. although i walked away empty-handed, i was satisfied just scoping out the one-of-a-kind items on display.

come away with me to santa barbara for four days of tranquility, where you will indulge in rejuvenating yoga, nourishing food, and unlimited solace at white lotus foundation.

Price Includes:

• yoga classes for all levels in a supportive and nurturing environment
• all meals provided (breakfast, lunch, dinner and light snacks)
• cozy yurts with beautiful balinese beds for deep slumber
• 40 acres of hiking trails, waterfalls, natural pools & flowing creek
• free time for lounging, napping, exploring, and reading
• guided meditation in a modern-day hopi

When I was asked, as a little girl, what I wanted to be when I grow up, my reply varied from day to day. I explored fantasies of becoming just about everything under the sun from a doctor to a dancer to a gypsy who roams foreign lands by day and dances in forests by night. But at the end of the day, when I was alone in my room, I dreamed of being wild and free. That is what I wanted to be. Future plans seem irrelevant when the present contains such enormous possibility. I did not want to think so much about my fate but rather soak up the moment with people I adore, engrossed in conversation about love and life and dreams and fears and the deep desires that are so often repressed in hopes of conforming to a mold.

My life is much different now than it was 25 years ago, when I was listening to Bob Seger on 8-track tapes and riding a Peaches & Cream bike through dirt trails believing I could actually keep pace with my brother on his BMX, but some things remain the same. Freedom is, and always has been, my heart’s insistent aspiration and the key to my content. The desire to be who I am outweighs the need to build an illusory reputation that may or may not win the favor of others. I never wanted to contort myself to fit into a matrix I do not belong.

I still remember the moment I first grasped the true definition of those all-too-familiar words, “To thine own self be true.” I was in my twenties at the time, desperately seeking answers to questions that burned in the back of my mind, when suddenly I understood the importance of a life lived honestly without compulsion to explain myself. The need to please vanished into thin air after arriving at the realization that I am the only person who wakes up in my shoes each day. The fear of disappointing another was abruptly replaced by the courage to walk a path of authenticity, knowing it was the only shot at peace of mind.

At some point in life, I vowed to actualize my dreams and consummate wild-eyed hankerings, forsaking the rules I was instructed to follow. Years of careful assessment and numerous miscalculations unearthed the abysmal secret I inadvertently knew all along: being wild and free is essential to my personal happiness. Regardless of what I am doing or with whom I spend my time, dancing to a rhythm I can call my own is a hunger that refuses to wane.

i love to spend my evenings with good people and a smorgasbord of appetizing food. it’s one of the simple pleasures in life that never gets old. my friends seem to be good at just about everything they do and making a marvelous, homemade meal is no exception. here’s a peek at one of the many skills they possess.