Change of Seasons

by Kelsey Parker

Cozy sweaters. Pumpkin spice everything. Chilly evenings. Shorter days. Fall colors covering the hills. Fall. Is. Here.


The transition from season to season happens so quickly, and without permission from anyone. We accept the shift, although sometimes begrudgingly. We find the things that we love about fall (some of those listed above) and make the most of the shift.


What if we made life changes with the same level of acceptance? As if we knew the change was necessary and inevitable but filled with goodness. Instead, our instinct is to fight against change or avoid it all together. We live in spaces where we are cozy, where we feel comfortable, where things are consistent, and where discomfort is avoided at all costs.


Dealing with change can be tricky; that’s why Spencer Johnson wrote the short, clever book Who Moved My Cheese? The story is about four characters living in a maze. When their cheese suddenly disappears, two characters (Hem and Ha) sit and complain, feel victimized, and use their energy hoping the cheese will return, while the other two characters (Sniff and Scurry) accept the cheese is gone and hustle into the maze to find new cheese. 


The lesson: the quicker we adapt to change, the better. 


This short book is filled with catchy (maybe cheesy) lessons, like:


• “The quicker you let go of old cheese, the sooner you find new cheese.”

• “Being in the uncomfortable zone is much better than staying in a cheese-less situation.”

• “Movement in a new direction helps find new cheese.”

• “The more important your cheese is to you, the more you want to hold on to it.”


This fall, fall into change. If you’re like me, the fall might not be graceful. In fact, it might hurt a bit. But, what if you land exactly where you should be? Maybe a little lighter, a little happier, a little more you?


Kelsey 

Spring: A Season for Clearing Out, Growing, and Giving

by Kelsey Parker


Pinterest can provide you thousands of “Spring Cleaning Checklists,” reminding you to scrub your baseboards, check your air filters, or clean the dust behind your fridge. As we shift away from the season of accumulating things, what if we dedicated our spring season to clearing out the old, working on personal growth, and giving back to our community? It doesn’t matter if your house is dirty. When your kitchen sink is full of dishes and the laundry is piling up, remember that just as the lotus flower grows in mud, so can you. 


CLEARING OUT


Two hours into vacuuming, dusting, doing laundry, and window-washing and it’s finally time. That 10-second-my-house-is-so-clean feeling. It’s so satisfying. The smells, the shine — you visualize yourself accepting an award for the “Cleanest  House  on  the  Block.”  Merry  Maids  would  hire  you  any  day.  Then, reality hits: your family trails in with gym bags, sticky fingers, and food wrappers. The battle is lost. But you did your best, Oh Clean One. Are you crazy like me and feel genuine joy (and utter shock) when you see what the vacuum  has  picked  up?  What  if  we  were  similarly  interested  in  the  dirt  (loss,  disappointment,  death,  failure,  broken  relationships)  we’re  holding on to? Noticing and sitting in your muddiness is challenging. It’s un-comfortable. It’s supposed to be. But it is necessary for growth. The magic happens when you can notice the dirt, and then clear it out.  


GROWING


Springtime is the season of preparing for future abundance. You may be clearing out weeds, planting seeds, and/or protecting your plants from weather or hungry deer. As you tend to your garden, so should  you  tend  to  your  life.  Make  small  investments  this  spring  to  improve  your  future  self.  Do  something new; learn a new skill or find a new hobby. Listen to an inspiring podcast or listen to an audiobook. Sign up for a race you’ve always wanted to complete or a class on a subject you’ve always been interested in. A little effort each day goes a long way in your personal growth. 


GIVING 


There  are  countless  opportunities  to  serve  our  community.  Whether  you’re  donating  gently  used  goods, your skills, your time, or your money, every contribution matters. Giving (in any way) has the added benefit of making you feel good while serving others. Find a program or charity that speaks to  you  and  use  your  gifts/talents  to  serve  them.  You can attend a charity event (WAVI’s Beach Ball event),  donate  your  resources  to  The  Salvation  Army, drive around town for Meals on Wheels, or sponsor a boy at the Club for Boys (just to name a few). 


Kelsey 

The Good Space

By Kelsey Parker

I’m a yogi, lawyer, business owner, and now … publisher. I don’t even know what that means – “publisher.” But, I’ll figure it out (with hours and hours of training from Tracy, “Googling,” “You Tubing,”... doing all the “…ings”).  When I learned that Tracy was planning her next adventure and was planning to step away from Black Hills Woman Magazine, I had an instant gut feeling: “You should do this.” You know how the story ends because you’re reading this article. So, I’m writing this to tell you my why. 


This is my good space. 


A very, very, very long time ago, the Patanjali wrote the Yoga Sutras, which are considered to be the foundational texts of yoga. The Yoga Sutras contain 196 Sanskrit sutras on the theory and practice of yoga. In describing the physical practice of yoga (asanas), Patanjali described that poses should be “Sthira Sukha” — in Sanskrit, “Sthira” means strong, steady, and stable, and  “Sukha” means happiness, ease, or bliss. Sukha’s literal translation is often given as “good space.” In other words, there should be a perfect balance of effort to hold a pose as there is in enjoyment of holding the pose. Indeed, if there’s too much striving, then the pose becomes unenjoyable. Conversely, if there is too much ease, the pose may feel passive and unsatisfying.


In yoga, and in life, we should be focusing on our “good space.” Your work and your relationships should be that ideal combination of effort and enjoyment. We invest time in relationships we value because they bring us happiness. We put effort into a new project at work because it brings us satisfaction. For people living out their passion and purpose, this good space may look imbalanced from the outside. Lori Greiner, from ABC’s Shark Tank, always says, “Entrepreneurs are the only people who will work 80 hours a week to avoid working 40 hours a week.” I can’t tell you the number of times people have said to me, “How do you do it all?” “Do you ever sleep?” “You’re too busy!” I’m “doing it all” because I’m living in my good space. “Work” doesn’t feel like work to me. I get to wake up at 4:20 a.m. (and see bright-eyed and bushy-tailed friends), I get to operate businesses with my husband and my best friends, I get the opportunity to support local women and businesses … and I couldn’t be more excited.  


It’s my dharma. 


I won’t use every article to throw in Sanskrit words, but here, I must. Dharma is your soul’s purpose, your calling, the reason you are here. Dharma is most fully achieved when it is in service to others. When you’re living your dharma, you’ll feel balanced, satisfied, and content. When you’re not living in your purpose, you may feel stuck, anxious, or unworthy. You know your dharma. You may not be able to articulate it perfectly, but it’s there. What are you naturally good at that is a challenge to others? What makes you feel content/happy? What fleeting idea regularly passes your mind? What is your gut telling you to do? I believe your gut has a direct connection to a higher power. It (Higher Power) wants you to listen. Your dharma exists to serve you and, more importantly, it exists to serve others.  


The problem we face is we’ve spent years, maybe decades, not listening to our dharma. We’ve listened and abided by our family traditions and cultural norms. We’ve done things we didn’t think felt “right” but society told us we should. We’ve created lives based on others’ ideal version of a life. We’ve ignored our instincts in favor of approval. We’ve allowed the opinions of others to dictate how we live. We’ve been stay-at-home moms when we wanted a career.  We’ve worked at jobs we hated because staying at home raising kids wasn’t “enough.” We went to college to be a doctor instead of following our passion for art. I’m here to tell you to start listening to your gut and trust your instincts. 


You know what’s great? You don’t have to be an expert in something in order for it to be your dharma. Before we opened a hot yoga studio, I had no idea what went into opening or running a business. More importantly, I had zero expertise or experience in fitness, group fitness, and, ya know, yoga.  But, it felt right, so I trusted my gut. As I sit here now, after just Googling “what does a publisher do?”, I know it’s right. My gut told me. 


I’m here to serve you. I’m here to celebrate women in all of their accomplishments — business, family, or otherwise. I’m here to support and promote local businesses and highlight the remarkable place we live.