"So let the light guide your way Hold every memory as you go, And every road you take will always lead you home. It's been a long day without you, my friend, And I'll tell you all about it when I see you again."

“I really don't know why it is that all of us are so committed to the sea, except I think it's because in addition to the fact that the sea changes, and the light changes, and ships change, it's because we all came from the sea. And it is an interesting biological fact that all of us have in our veins the exact same percentage of salt in our blood that exists in the ocean, and, therefore, we have salt in our blood, in our sweat, in our tears. We are tied to the ocean. And when we go back to the sea - whether it is to sail or to watch it - we are going back from whence we came." -John F Kennedy

Our battered suitcases were piled on the sidewalk again; we had longer ways to go. But no matter, the road is life.

Jack Kerouac

She sees them walking in a straight line, that's not really her style.
And they all got the same heartbeat, but hers is falling behind.
Nothing in this world could ever bring them down.
Yeah, they're invincible, and she's just in the background.

Remember that life is unexpected sometimes, things will be hard and things will be easy, we never have as much control over any of it as we’d like. Let love be the binding force to help you through the tougher times. Practice patience always and keep that sense of humor. Don’t forget you will always have the other person in your corner. 

Give me something to hold onto and never let go of...

Ah, how do I explain life as I know it to be as of recent...

I think a lot about perspective lately,

and learning.

We all start in this small bubble of familiar,

the people we know, the places we recognize...

and as years pass by we begin to grow and expand into new and different things.

Sometimes at an appropriate pace,

and sometimes we find ourselves outside of our comfort zone,

in deeper than we can handle.

Our views on life and living evolve with our changing landscapes.

Concepts that we struggle to grasp become an obvious reality,

and things that were once overwhelming and stressful become a mindless reaction.

Perspective can be confining,

if we don't walk a mile in someone else's shoes we really can never understand our fellow person.

It's about actively creating experiences to grow your perspective,

so you can appreciate it all.

I've so emphatically bored with the idea of settling.

Keeping the security of a steady predictable day to day,

and burdening myself with "stuff,"

and maintaining a lifestyle of safety.

I crave the unknown, the uncertain, and the adventure of a new horizon.

I'm obsessed with the idea of the ocean and the changing tides.

I want to count the sunsets and sunrises on golden beaches,

and the gentle lullaby of the waves meeting the shore.

The ocean never settles,

constantly in motion,

in various states of calm and stormy.

Unrestrained and stretching endlessly.

I realize that all my dreaming is so close to reality.

And the inspiration comes from the journey.

Never staying too long in one place,

always gaining additional perspective.

And I watch from the sidelines as the select few live the way I want to live.

Coming from ordinary and transforming life into extraordinary.

Relentlessly chasing dreams

and always celebrating passion.

Perfecting the craft and defying all sense of "normal."

It never has to be just one way,

we create for ourselves the type of life we have.

Its making choices at every crossroad that some times requires bravery and patience.

I know this is true happiness,

living bravely and honestly.

Never taking the easy way because it's easy,

never being the one to build obstacles.

Priorities are important considerations as well.

What kind of legacy do we want to leave behind.

Recently I have had a couple conversations surrounding the idea of faith and purpose.

I will adamantly argue that there must be a purpose for our existence,

because life is too hard to be void of reason.

It's our business in life to never stop the search.

Follow in the footsteps of those that have gone ahead.

Those that stand out as brave and bold and fearless.

Observe and note that they have found a happiness in authentic living,

and doing what they love.

There's things in my life that I lack,

and by choosing to live the way that I have...

I might never gain them.

However, there is a beauty in freedom.

There is a hopefulness and excitement in living adventurously.

I know this is not the path that everyone should walk.

But I know,

with complete certainty this is the way it's meant to be for me.

I may not be able to rationalize or explain why or how it came to be this way,

but I refuse to deny myself of it.

And I wander about until I find the ocean,

and the beauty of coastal living,

and I marry adventure,

and I nurture experience,

and practice love throughout all of it always.

The things that have happened in my past is all part of my perspective.

Those first moments of learning and experiencing,

from the safety of a secure bubble,

to the expansions of the many places I have lived,

and the many types of people I have lived with.

The sharing of stories and the shared understanding of people all around.

This perspective is packed neatly into my suitcase,

and I carry it with me always.

And though I'm always learning, when I first began I didn't realize the beauty of it all.

Because sometimes you have to wait and take a few steps back to understand all the pieces of the puzzle. 

But now I see that every move, and every address, and every new friend, and all the sunsets

have created who I am...

and have pointed me in the direction of where I'm going.

So I will be eternally grateful to everything that has helped me along the way.

I will continue to look for the mad ones,

who show me what a life looks like when you follow your dreams and do what you love.

I will continue to look for the beauty in everything,

even when I can't understand it all.

I will continue to be brave and journey outside of my comfort zone,

that way my perspective will also grow with me.

I will continue to practice love,

in all types and forms and celebrate those around me who have perfected that art.

I will continue to hope that someday every single piece will be completed,

and I'll have a full understanding of what it all means,

even though I know it all matters.

Because gratitude, beauty, bravery, love, and hope are so important in this life.

They are the tools I carry with me in all times,

they are the fuel to feed the soul of an adventurer.

The changes in our life must come from the impossibility to live otherwise than according to the demands of our conscience not from our mental resolution to try a new form of life." -Tolstoy

'Cause I have been where you are before

And I have felt the pain of losing who you are

And I have died so many times, but I am still alive

I believe that tomorrow is stronger than yesterday

And I believe that your head is the only thing in your way

I wish that you could see your scars turn into beauty

I believe that today it's okay to be not okay

C.J. Perri

“Nobody will protect you from your suffering. You can't cry it away or eat it away or starve it away or walk it away or punch it away or even therapy it away. It's just there, and you have to survive it. You have to endure it. You have to live through it and love it and move on and be better for it and run as far as you can in the direction of your best and happiest dreams across the bridge that was built by your own desire to heal.” 
― Cheryl Strayed

Carry bravery for experiencing the unknown. Carry bravery for events that push you to evolve. Carry appreciation for beauty...the beauty in people and places.
The beauty in the quietest moments in the loudest of places. The beauty that is everywhere all the time, and the beauty that often gets overlooked.

Without you, well you left the cage door open 
and your pretty bird just flew. 
And I never knew that I could fly so high 
or the sky could be this blue. 
I can't believe it's real, 
so this is how it feels, 
me without you.

J.N.

“How wild it was, to let it be.” -Cheryl Strayed

I know that time has passed because my perspective has changed.

 And it's been only slight alterations,

with very subtle turns down the long path.

Part of me wonders,

could this just be the side effects of growing old?

Even gazing back into the past

I feel unbelievably equipped for the journey forward.

And the unsettled churning of inevitable changes have become soothing,

and flows like gentle waves over the shore.

I"m filling my head with daydreams about beach sunsets,

and tall palm trees,

endless summers,

and panoramic ocean views.

I feel the West calling and it's strong,

and always the roads have lead West with a short visit East.

But sometimes you have to take a few steps back to take a few steps forward.

I am endlessly and uncontrollably thankful for the journey.

The opportunity to even take the steps forward into the unknown adventures.

Free of the responsibility to health, wealth, or other humans,

I am wandering the unexplored corridors of this place we live.

Soaking in adventures and the people along the way.

I love my life and I wouldn't change a thing.

The beauty of living without regret is being able to evaluate each situation,

to celebrate triumph,

and to construct the unexpected surprises as necessary to grow and transform.

And credit it goes to those along the way,

that have offered selfless support,

surprise encouragement,

kind words.

Those who have stood by and let me find my way,

in my own way.

I urge you still to continue to grow and evolve and transform.

Work to understand and practice love to the best of your capability.

Understand the importance of relationships,

learn to depend on others and let others depend on you,

but all the while don't break off pieces of yourself in the process.

Maintain the originality of the person you strive to be,

Obtain a better balance of tending to your self and giving back to other people.

You never know what moments will be long and which will be short.

We only control the here and now,

and we can only make educated decisions and set goals for the future.

But there is a necessary flexibility as we proceed through this lifetime.

Don't forget this.

And I've seen the most beautiful example of love recently.

This has been both inspirational and encouraging.

I've seen people grow together and learn a healthy co-dependence.

I've seen good appearing from hard times.

But I've also seen people grow apart,

which sometimes happens-for both intentional and unintentional reasons.

But don't lost hope in it all,

know that somethings are inevitable and others are meant to be.

Proceed with caution but maintain your self-identity.

For better or worse,

things will happen the way they are meant too.

and I still think about you,

but I know that it's okay,

and maybe our paths will cross again someday.

it all matters.

There is beauty in the transformation.

I told her, "I love the view from up here Warm sun and wind in my ear We'll watch the world from above As it turns to the rhythm of love. We may only have tonight But till the morning sun, you're mine..."

“I am collecting the lessons each faction has to teach me, and storing them in my mind like a guidebook for moving through the world. There is always something to learn, always something that is important to understand." -Veronica Roth

“But even so, amid the tornado-ed Atlantic of my being, do I myself still for ever centrally disport in mute calm; and while ponderous planets of unwaning woe revolve round me, deep down and deep inland there I still bathe me in eternal mildness of joy.” 
― Herman Melville, Moby Dick

“Dusk is just an illusion because the sun is either above the horizon or below it. And that means that day and night are linked in a way that few things are there cannot be one without the other yet they cannot exist at the same time. How would it feel I remember wondering to be always together yet forever apart?” 

Take me into your loving arms
Kiss me under the light of a thousand stars
Oh, darling, place your head on my beating heart
I'm thinking out loud
That maybe we found love right where we are.

Lessons in leaving...

Been procrastinating this post,

uncertain of how to wade through the jumble of thoughts and feelings.

And with change on the horizon I can't help but to feel that familiar sense of excitement.

Finally freeing myself of the current situation of here and now.

Resuming the journey into an unknown,

after a long hiatus...

and the comfort of being submerged in the known.

And I walk the way my compass points,

heading west,

leaving the east of my past behind.

And it feels weird to not long for the concrete jungle.

As if one switch was turned off as another was turned on.

Day dreams of palm trees, sandy beaches, and the magnificent ocean,

stretching endlessly on my horizon.

And the greatest adventures are birthed from the journey.

And home is where the road is,

always making certain to keep patience and practice bravery.

Always stopping to appreciate beauty along the way.

And when I really think about leaving,

and the art of saying goodbye,

I've learned to appreciate every single moment,

and enjoy every single relationship.

I take nothing for-granted,

because in the end life is short and you don't control the time.

I've let life teach me the lessons I need to learn,

to equip myself for the challenging unknown.

And as I have said before,

I trust that the relationships in my past will reappear in the future,

if this is the way it is meant to be.

And I have checked another box on the bucket list.

I have waited and waited and waited,

learning patience and simplicity.

I have practiced the lifestyle of staying.

I have played hard,

and seized all the opportunity that has laid in my path.

But the time is finally here,

and I'm venturing forward.

And I will gaze into the last two years with sweet nostalgia.

I will not regret the moments that didn't make sense,

and I will not count the time as wasteful.

I have endured the challenge of staying.

And this was difficult.

Where most people find this a common practice,

it was just as foreign as when I first stepped off the plane.

And when I look back on it I'm eternally grateful for all my blessings.

And the people I met,

and the friends I made,

have birthed a new hope for me.

That people are inherently good,

and they treat each other kindly.

They support each other through the hard times,

and celebrate with each other through the good times.

The support that has been showed to me,

just reinforces that people here and people there are the same.

That everyone works to make the best hand with the cards they are dealt.

And it's never too late to build lasting relationships,

and even in familiar settings,

quiet conversation can bring loud realizations.

And I founds friends here that are instant family.

And we didn't have to put in years and years of drama and struggle,

we didn't build a common past,

we didn't share acquaintances.

We lived invincibly in the here and now.

Intensely present in the current,

working towards a common future.

To find a way to let life create a comfort,

but in each way unique to the individual.

And my friends have shown me,

we can accept each other despite differences,

and that lightheartedness is important for maintaining sanity.

And I will miss them terribly when I leave,

but I will know that every single moment was appreciated.
And not a single thing was taken for-granted.

And I will cherish the time,

 the games, the play dates, the bonfires. the dinners, the parties,

the dancing, and laughing, the engagements, and weddings,

and house renovations, and lazy summer days,

Because every moment in life has a purpose,

a piece of the puzzle to complete the bigger purpose.

And we can't always tell in the moment exactly what that will look like,

but when you make progress and step back,

you see it all fitting together exactly how it's supposed to be.

This wasn't the same as the journey East,

and it certainly won't be the same as the journey West,

but for the time being,

this was exactly there I needed to be.

Here in the middle,

practicing the life lessons I learned.

Perfecting patience, and gathering strength to complete the journey.

Remembering to love,

and being open to second chances,

and to soak up the feeling of being safe,

and belonging to the same address for a year.

To wait for the right opportunity,

and to not rush through the present.

And to celebrate with my family,

and to grow closer to those in my past.

Its been good,

better than I ever imagined.

And while I am ecstatic to head onward,

I will not discount the pieces of the puzzle that fell into place here.

West Coast, I'm coming for you...

And change, I'm welcoming you...

Be brave. Practice love,

and don't forget...it all matters.