How'd October go for you? I hope you had at least one lovely moment to relish this month; if not, there's still one more day to do something wonderful for yourself. This has been a very dynamic month for me. Starting with a beautiful birthday and then getting blessed with the realization of a long-held dream. I loved this month and in today's post I'm sharing a few other amazing things I cherished and some hard choices that taught me valuable lessons.  

Hey Love,  

In the last post I wrote about a wild dream of mines that's blooming and I shared in my manifesto that this month I'm practicing sharing my journey and what I'm hoping for. Both of these are new personal developments for me. Over the summer, I came across the following in Sarah Breathnach's Simple Abundance "expectation is the emotional investment the ego makes in a particular outcome". This really struck me and shifted my paradigm. Often in the past I shy away from thinking or enjoying the wait of something I'm looking forward to. There's this notion that I'll jinx it or that I'm only fooling myself and it won't truly happen like I want it to happen. This has made me hesitant in sharing my hopes and dreams with others. The fear that they won't be realized as I hope and the fear that others won't celebrate or care. These fears have kept me from the joy of hope.  

We've journeyed through nine months and now we are here in October, the final quarter of 2020. This is my favorite month of the year, for celebratory reasons and weather reasons. I love October because it is my birthday month and the start of my favorite season. Last week I celebrated my 30th birthday with family and friends. I welcomed my new year by paddle boarding in the morning and with a cozy evening dinner with the full moon. I spent the first weekend of this month reflecting on my 30 year journey in my journal and dreaming of my hopes and dreams for this new decade. So this month is off to a lovely leisurely start for me.  There are so many other little wonderful things that I'm looking forward to this month and in this post I'm sharing a few along with my manifesto for October.  

Manifesto 

Botanical Garden Yoga 

My favorite little botanical garden has recently reopened and I'm so happy about that.  It's one of my favorite places in Miami. It's the smallest botanical garden I've ever been too and I love how cozy and intimate it always feels. It's like being in my own backyard; my "secret" dream. So this month, hopefully, this week, I'll treat myself to their socially distanced afternoon yoga session and spend a few moments reading by the pond.  

Reading at the Ocean Shore 

Something I thoroughly relished during my unemployment was taking my beach chair right to the shore line and spending an hour or so reading as the ocean waves massaged my feet. It's even more glorious than I'm describing.  Though my time is more fixed and limited, I want to make a deliberate effort to do this once a week.  

A Leap of Faith  

This is sort of a big announcement that I'm sneaking into this post. I've been dreaming of moving to a new city. I've actually thought I'd be there by now and planned to do it before turning 30. Fortunately, God's timing is better than mines. So for reasons unknown to me,  He still has me here, but this month may present the opportunity to take a leap of faith and embark on an adventure I've only dreamed and hoped for. More to come.  

Carving a Pumpkin  

I've never carved a pumpkin and would love to do that this October. My friend has been planning one for us so I hope this is the year I carve my first pumpkin. I just want to light a cinnamon spice candle, sip some pumpkin spice latte, and enjoy a cozy girls night-in carving beautiful pumpkins. That's it.  

There's less than 3 months left in 2020, a year that's seen more for multiple lifetimes. There's a lot of turmoil all over the world. I'm learning to make the most of this year and to seek joy in the areas I can control. I don't want to look back and say 2020 was a horrible year; yes it has seemingly endless challenges, but there is good and beauty to be found.  My hope is to seek that daily grace and I hope you do the same. I pray October brings you love, joy, and peace.  

Faithfully, 

Marie