Presence > Presents

"There is peace that comes from being grateful for the good that comes our way, there is peace from letting go of the rest" -Card from my dad


Society makes Christmas seem like its about the sales, gifts, toys... not about spending time with your loved ones. As I have aged my favorite part of Christmas has become the part after the presents, when my family exchanges cards.

It's the little things I didn't appreciate until I moved away from home, like those longer hugs from someone you love, reminiscing about the past by a fire, family dinners, etc. I was sometimes unable to come home for holidays or birthdays but then when I did get the opportunity to go home it made me appreciate the presence of my loved ones so much more.

When you are spending time with those you care about be fully present. Time is much more valuable than a present ever will be. And I promise your day will be happier when you give someone a piece of your heart rather than a piece of your wallet.

See you soon NC & Spain~

I did it!!!

One of the many perks of my job is getting paid time off. Two months ago I was planning on going home to spend time with my parents. While I do love time with my parents, how often does a 20-something get eight PTO days he/she has to use in one month? Not often. 

I studied abroad in Spain for the summer of 2013 and when I left I promised myself that it wouldn't be my last time visiting. We are now about to hit 2016 and I had no real plans to go back, I kept thinking to myself that I would eventually go back.

The trouble is, we all think we have time, and say we will do it ‘later’. But sometimes there is no next time, no second chances, it’s now or never. In regards to money, yes I used the majority of my savings for these trips, but we weren't born to pay bill, life is about collecting moments not things, and I would personally rather die with endless memories and a full heart than a full savings account with little to no adventures. 

So I did it. I booked one flight to Raleigh, North Carolina to see my sorority big that I haven't seen in over a year and I booked a flight to Madrid, Spain to visit a place that I hold so close to my heart. 

Don't get so busy making a living that you forget to make a life.

(P.S. I am not a completely terrible daughter, I am using one of those PTO days to spend a long weekend with my parents)

Hello 2016, I'm free~

I have spent the majority of my life doing what is expected of me: excelling in school, graduating from college with a job lined up, following the rules (well most of them), and overall just being a responsible member of society. I hit the point a few months into my job where I knew I was doing “adulting” the right way: I had a budget, I was putting money into my savings account every month, I was excelling at my job but it all just felt so typical and boring. I found myself feeling the societal pressures of finding a soul mate, saving money so I can comfortably retire, devoting my life to my career, and basing what I should do with my life off of what others expected of me and what they deemed was the responsible way of doing things.

I was existing, but I wasn’t living. I was confined by the walls that I let society build around me. I let them tame me. I’ve realized that none of this was real and my only limit to choosing happiness was myself. In my life, I’ve lived, I’ve loved, I’ve lost, I’ve missed, I’ve hurt, I’ve trusted, I’ve made mistakes, but most of all, I’ve learned. I have learned that I am in charge of how I feel, I have this insane calling to be where I’m not, and that I have a need to explore and truly live life.

This is my commitment: to live up to the spirit that is in me, fall head over heels in love with myself, and do everything I have always wanted to do. Maybe this new journey isn’t so much about becoming anything. Maybe it’s about unbecoming everything that isn’t really me, so I can be who I am meant to be in the first place. We were all born to dance to the beat of our own heart; to roam without cages; with the innocence of a child; and the free spirit of untamed horses. 

I’m finally free of the binds I once held within myself, and let me tell ya, it feels good to be lost in the right direction