Slower, Wealthier, Happier

Good morning, beautiful. ☀️✨

A couple of weeks ago, I started asking myself a really simple question: What are all the yummy things around me that I have never taken advantage of simply because I never looked for them? I thought about my undergraduate years living in Sonoma County, California, literally in wine country. Napa Valley was about 45 minutes away from me, and do you know I never took advantage of it? YEARS later, after graduate school, moving away, getting married, and building an entirely different life, I would eventually book trips with girlfriends to fly back to California, visit San Francisco, drive to Napa Valley, and take wine tours. Every time I think about that, I laugh because this beautiful experience had basically been sitting at my feet for years, and I never even thought to explore it.

That memory made me curious about my life today. What is around me right now that I don’t know exists because I’ve never bothered to look? What could be fun? What could teach me something? What could add another yummy experience to my life? And even better, what if some of it was FREE? So I did a quick Google search of things happening right here in my own city, and I discovered that there was a free one-hour Black History tour sharing the history, legacy, and impact African Americans have had on the very city where I live. I had absolutely no idea it existed. So, of course, I said yes. I scheduled the tour for one of my best friends and me, and it turned into one of the yummiest experiences I have said yes to lately.

Here’s what I’m learning about saying yes. Sometimes you have an idea of what you’re saying yes to, but you have absolutely no idea what that yes is going to give you. I thought I was going on a free one-hour tour. What I received was history, connection, perspective, and a deeper curiosity about the community around me. There were cultural imprints and stories that made me want to know more, see more, and understand more. And if I’m being real, I haven’t always been a museum girl. I could go to a museum and enjoy myself, but I wasn’t necessarily the girl craving an afternoon staring at exhibits. But at this yummy age I am now, something about it landed differently. Maybe I am different. Maybe I am paying attention differently. Either way, I am so glad I gave myself the opportunity to find out.

And here’s the magical part. That one yes has already opened the door to another one. I discovered that another city I once lived in, only about ten minutes away, has free rotating art exhibits featuring different artists. Now that’s on my list too. One search became one tour. One tour sparked another curiosity. One yes created space for another yes. And suddenly, places I’ve driven past and communities I’ve lived in for years feel like they have little treasures tucked inside of them waiting for me to notice.

So now I’m asking myself a different question: What else could I say yes to? What else has been sitting right around the corner that I’ve never noticed? What could I learn? Who could I meet? What could make me smile? What might become a new interest simply because I gave myself permission to try it? There is something really beautiful about realizing that creating a fuller life doesn’t always require a plane ticket, a huge budget, or some grand plan. Sometimes it starts with looking around at the life you already have and becoming curious about what else might be available to you.

Maybe that’s my invitation to you this week too. Look around. Search your own neighborhood. Check your local museums, libraries, community centers, galleries, parks, and little places you’ve driven past a hundred times without wondering what was inside. Ask yourself, What have I never experienced simply because I’ve never looked? I have a feeling there are some really yummy experiences waiting for us, maybe closer than we ever imagined. And I can’t wait to see what my next yes opens the door to.

Love,
Your Most Magical Self ✨