Hello! I am so excited to FINALLY be starting a blog, and particularly this blog!
If you would have told me 3 years ago that I would be living in Missouri again, out in the country, far away from a big city, I wouldn't have believed it. In 2017 I moved away from Missouri, all the way to Seattle, Washington, by myself with no job. (crazy, I know) My biggest dream was to move to the Pacific Northwest and spend my time hiking, traveling, and working as a photographer. I was already working as a freelance photographer in Saint Louis, Missouri. I had just bought a house the year prior, and was working towards a very successful career. But, I just couldn't get the thought of regret of never trying, out of my head. So I did it! I packed up my bags and moved to Seattle and was offered a promising future at a studio, in the matter of just 2 months.
Seattle was amazing. It was everything I imagined it would be. But it was also a lot of things I didn't imagine. It was beautiful, full of adventure, a city full of art, unbelievable landscapes, and an environmentally conscience city. But it was also lonely, expensive, and eye opening. When I moved to Seattle, Justin and I were separated. We both had different paths we wanted to follow. I wanted to move to Seattle, and he wanted to pursue flight school for the Missouri National Guard. However, after pursuing our goals and following our own paths, we realized that it just wasn't as fulfilling without each other supporting one another along the way. Life inevitably brought us back together. Which meant a long distance relationship. We spent another year pursuing our own paths while trying to decide what our next steps were going to be.
The Missouri National Guard brought me back to Missouri, or well the want to be with Justin did. Which put me back in a country town, with no major cities close by. This is something I never thought I would do with my life. I always wanted to escape the small town life. I wanted to be successful, live in the city, and do MAJOR things. What I didn't know was how much life I would actually get back by moving to the country. By moving to this tiny town of Swedeborg (like so tiny), I would get the chance to start fresh, to become who I am fully, focus on what fills my cup, and live a slower paced life on our 3 acres of land.
Now, if any of you know me. I don't live slow-paced. I have always been on the go. In highschool, I was in sports, worked at the local Wal-Mart, in clubs, and was taking college credits. In college I worked 3 jobs in the summer, and was taking 12 credit hours online. I finished a 4 year degree in 3 years while working at a local movie theater and in an honors fraternity. I immediately jumped into the photography industry right out of college and hustled my way up as a freelancer. I was always doing something, working on projects, trying to better myself and my career. I worked so much that I burnt out faster than I thought. Which is part of the reason I am here. Though I still love photography and it is still my career, I am learning to find balance for the other passions I have and for my relationships. I spent too much time pushing everything else away so I could focus 100% of my energy and attention towards working my way up in photography.
"If we want to live a whole-hearted life, we have to become intentional about cultivating sleep and play, and about letting go of exhaustion as a status symbol and productivity as self-worth." -unknown
So whats next? During my time in Seattle, I became 100% plant-based. I also really took a good, hard look at what sort of impact my habits and lifestyle was making on the planet. I re-evaluated so many things and then started educating myself on it. Now this is something that is incredibly important to me as I watch what is happening in the world. We are producing so much waste that the life of our planet is in question. I read book after book, watched tons of documentaries, and researched everything I could about what we are doing and how it impacts the world. And to be honest, I am still learning, and I just want to shout it from the roof tops so everyone else can learn about it too.
In this new chapter of life, I want to work on living a more sustainable life, as well as, share my knowledge on how to do that. From being plant-based, growing our own food, to sharing how we are living more sustainably. I also want to help educate others on the importance of supporting small farmers, zero waste, recycling, healing the body with food, and so much more! Though I am not perfect and am still learning I want to show others the small simple things they can be doing that will also make an impact and how to adjust their lifestyle to work with these new changes.
Thank you for checking in and I look forward to building a community of people who want to do better for our health and our earth.
Leave a comment below and introduce yourself! I would love to get to know more about you.
#plantstead #sustainableliving #mindfullifestyle #plantbased #introduction #midwestlife #environmentalawareness #mentalhealth #positiveimpacts #growyourownfood #backyardgarden #sustainable #mindfulliving #healthyliving #naturalhealth #mindfulness #newadventures
Comments