Winds of Monterey
I have found that whenever I am feeling so out of sorts that I can’t see upwards, a day comes and arrives with a windstorm. The kind of high energy winds that move your hair no matter which way you face and shake your soul. I think of those days as personal gifts, just for me, with the purpose of shaking me loose from my depressions, my fears, my confusions. The more time I spend outside, surrounded and encircled by these powerful winds, the more their force blow away all doubts and clear my mind so that I may see the way out of whatever maze I have found myself in.
As I am just starting out in this journey of attaining creativity, I find myself wavering, over and over again, not knowing of the response towards my work, and at times not knowing what my work should be. And so the last couple of days, after putting together a simple business plan and some financial projections, I have felt beaten. How could I ever think that this would work? How would I dare jump?
And today’s winds came, from the ocean all the way up the mountains and over the century old redwoods and into the valley and my house. As an astrological water sign, you’d think that water would be my source of inspiration, of movement. And yet it is only when those windy days arrive that I feel rushed forward, propelled into action. Isn’t wind what makes water move, what creates motion and is the start of waves in the ocean? So it makes sense, then, that strong winds would create the perfect days to clean house and get moving.
Last week I had done research on weekly craft markets and had remembered the Old Monterey Market Place. So to check it out in person, today I drove down the coast towards the beautiful town of Monterey, California.
The drive, swirly with the winds (those winds really were strong), started the clearing of my head, and I found myself thinking about my ultimate goals, and how I had defined success (remember that I had hinted it was not associated with loads of money or celebrity type fame). I may still now know the full way of how to meet my financial projections (yikes!) but I have to be thankful for something I wrote out last week. It does help to have focus on what I want the end goal to be, and with that, everything else, I still believe, will fall into its rightful place.
The hours spent at the craft and farmer’s market were well worth it and I walked away with an amazing amount of notes, all pertaining to the customer base that would be at the market, comments about displays, weather and how it would affect displays. Above all, however, I had fun, and with those winds, and a feeling of youth and excitement, I found my brain clear, refreshed. I felt my spirit lifted, engaged with my daily life, and willing to continue to move forward.
As I drove home with my first basket of fresh strawberries of the season, I sat in my quiet car (no music, no radio) and as I listened to the winds hissing through the windows, I kept thinking, I kept plotting, I kept progressing forward. How could I not feel uplifted as I drove along the sand dunes of Sand City, and saw the beginnings of the foggy haze that would cover the strawberries field of Castroville and Watsonville, and looked out onto the wild ocean being colored by the descending orange sun?
Although it was a successful day just because of the thoughts and notes that I was able to produce, I acknowledged that as an artist or any entrepreneur who is working for themselves, and probably at home, it is so essential to just get out of the house, at least for one afternoon, once a week, and just interact with life – other people, other experiences. The feelings of failure can accumulate so much quicker if I also begin to feel stuck physically in my house. If I want inspiration, although the redwoods around me provide me with plenty, I also need to change my habitat, see children smile, men buying flower bouquets, teenagers playing violins, and enjoy fresh strawberries!
