fieldnotes
At the start of this month I traipsed off to Taupo with Caitlin and Fern in a bid to ground myself, find myself and reconnect with who I truly am. I feel like a lot of the time my true authentic self gets covered up in expectations, pressures and other peoples beliefs of me. And what I've come to realise is that no one else's opinion fucking matters. I've got to do what feels good for me. And so do you. Originally it all started as a tweet. I was sitting at work. Dreaming of being elsewhere. And reading the paper (who am I). One article was on an event called Wanderlust. I'd heard about it before but after a year of doing on and off yoga I was dead keen to go. So I tagged Fern and Caitlin in a tweet and we began planning until February 2016 rolled around and there we were camping at a yoga festival! These are the photos that document the three days that we were there.
For those who are unsure what Wanderlust is its a four day wellbeing festival. Think four days filled with yoga, classes, meditation and music. Set in a beautiful outdoors location with mini villages of tents and stalls filled with clothes and food. Yes. There were hippy vibes. Yes. I was beyond inspired what people were wearing (bohemian bliss!!). And YES. I ate some damn good vegan food. Hosted just outside of Taupo on a beautiful resort it was the perfect place to get away for a bit and reconnect. There was vegan food to boot, including juices, shakes, THE BEST GOD DAMN SORBET IVE EVER HAD (chocolate and raspberry. pictured below) and VEGAN CURRY (which excites me like you wouldn't believe). Our days consisted of attending our various classes whether they be yoga, walks in nature or talks on bettering your life. And our nights ended with music in the main tent where 100s of people gathered together. The energy was electric.
Of all the classes and events the moments that stick with me the most was classes held by Kemi Nekvapil. I attended 88% of her classes and in each one I learnt more about myself. We explored our lives, whether we were happy and what we could do about it. In once class (held outside in a tent of course) she asked the woman who felt like they were living a life of passion to stand up. And they did. Their faces shone bright with smiles as we clapped for them. Then she asked for the woman who felt as though they weren't living that at all to stand up. I hesitated. And thought for a minute. And then I stood. It was the scariest shit I've done. Admitting to a group of 100+ strangers that I was not ok with where I was. But being honest with myself was the stepping stone I needed. Kemi is such a beautiful soul and the notes I took in her class are ones I reread in order to move forward with my life, dreams and goals.
The other 'class' that sticks with me was a meditation held by a lady named Emma. Her meditation was the last thing we did at Wanderlust and left me on such a high. It was just under an hour and took me through so many emotions, tied up the loose corners of my brain and helped me reconnect with myself. I even went up and hugged Emma afterwards. It was such a beautiful experience and even though its really really cheesy it changed my life.
I met and connected with many wonderful people at Wanderlust. Never have I been in one place filled with so many like minded souls and free spirited people. Most I'll never ever see again. All of them added to an experience that helped me shift some of my most negative beliefs about myself. I became closer to who I really am and the aftermath (being back home) was more work that anticipated. You can go to events like these, and you can feel inspired to shift your life. But its the work afterwards that gets you and I'm slowly going through that process. Sometimes it feels like your dragging yourself against the current. But other times you feel invincible.
Wanderlust was a humbling and life changing experience for me. It challenged me in a way I didn't except. I went wanting to leave inspired. And I did. I felt drained. I felt exhausted. But more than anything I had found hope by the time I left. I can't describe how Wanderlust was for everyone. But for me it was a roller coaster. I cried A LOT. And I felt joy too. My emotions were all over the place. And I can only put it down to the fact that a whole lot of my being and beliefs were changing and shifting. It was truly a crazy experience. And I would recommend it to anyone.
Sunday, 28 February 2016
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wanderlust photo journal
At the start of this month I traipsed off to Taupo with Caitlin and Fern in a bid to ground myself, find myself and reconnect with who I truly am. I feel like a lot of the time my true authentic self gets covered up in expectations, pressures and other peoples beliefs of me. And what I've come to realise is that no one else's opinion fucking matters. I've got to do what feels good for me. And so do you. Originally it all started as a tweet. I was sitting at work. Dreaming of being elsewhere. And reading the paper (who am I). One article was on an event called Wanderlust. I'd heard about it before but after a year of doing on and off yoga I was dead keen to go. So I tagged Fern and Caitlin in a tweet and we began planning until February 2016 rolled around and there we were camping at a yoga festival! These are the photos that document the three days that we were there.Of all the classes and events the moments that stick with me the most was classes held by Kemi Nekvapil. I attended 88% of her classes and in each one I learnt more about myself. We explored our lives, whether we were happy and what we could do about it. In once class (held outside in a tent of course) she asked the woman who felt like they were living a life of passion to stand up. And they did. Their faces shone bright with smiles as we clapped for them. Then she asked for the woman who felt as though they weren't living that at all to stand up. I hesitated. And thought for a minute. And then I stood. It was the scariest shit I've done. Admitting to a group of 100+ strangers that I was not ok with where I was. But being honest with myself was the stepping stone I needed. Kemi is such a beautiful soul and the notes I took in her class are ones I reread in order to move forward with my life, dreams and goals.
The other 'class' that sticks with me was a meditation held by a lady named Emma. Her meditation was the last thing we did at Wanderlust and left me on such a high. It was just under an hour and took me through so many emotions, tied up the loose corners of my brain and helped me reconnect with myself. I even went up and hugged Emma afterwards. It was such a beautiful experience and even though its really really cheesy it changed my life.
I met and connected with many wonderful people at Wanderlust. Never have I been in one place filled with so many like minded souls and free spirited people. Most I'll never ever see again. All of them added to an experience that helped me shift some of my most negative beliefs about myself. I became closer to who I really am and the aftermath (being back home) was more work that anticipated. You can go to events like these, and you can feel inspired to shift your life. But its the work afterwards that gets you and I'm slowly going through that process. Sometimes it feels like your dragging yourself against the current. But other times you feel invincible.
Wanderlust was a humbling and life changing experience for me. It challenged me in a way I didn't except. I went wanting to leave inspired. And I did. I felt drained. I felt exhausted. But more than anything I had found hope by the time I left. I can't describe how Wanderlust was for everyone. But for me it was a roller coaster. I cried A LOT. And I felt joy too. My emotions were all over the place. And I can only put it down to the fact that a whole lot of my being and beliefs were changing and shifting. It was truly a crazy experience. And I would recommend it to anyone.