I love traveling abroad. From the rush of the unknown to the exhilaration of new sights and sounds, I come alive in foreign places. Over the years, I’ve learned the best part about traveling abroad is the lack of connection. Wifi is generously available, but you still spend a lot of time offline, in-transit and walking around. I love the experience of being present without technological distractions.
On the way home from our trip to Santa Barbara yesterday, I considered my theme for the week. At first, I decided presence. On Friday, I went to Santa Barbara sans technology. I was without my phone for the entire weekend and it was amazing! Similar to traveling abroad, I had connection when I needed it; yet, I was mostly offline. I never scrolled mindlessly; I simply checked in with my little sisters to share fun things going on.
One of the best parts of the weekend was our dinner at Arigato. Walk-in only, we arrived to a 45-minute wait. To pass the time, we returned to Liliac Patisserie, an incredible gluten free bakery. We shared carrot cake and cookies and cream cheese cake. Desserts first always!
On our back to the restaurant, I noticed the Santa Barbara Art Museum. It was small, but I wanted to go anyways. Visiting art museums is one of my absolute favorite things to do and it was the last thing we did before we left yesterday. Upon seeing van Gogh’s, The Outskirts of Paris, I was reminded of his quote, “Great things are not done by impulse, but by a series of small things brought together.”
That was my take-away from the weekend:
What great thing am I working towards?
What is my purpose?
How do my small actions align with my purpose?
What am I doing to support my highest self?
How can I best serve others?
Most often, going away brings me back home, to my purpose, and that’s what this weekend did for me.