003. On Doing Nothing

Inner Vibes 💌 

Journal entry of a girl trying to find flow in the universe 🌍️ 

I never really understood the concept of writers block. I always used to think: “what’s so hard about writing? Surely if you’ve channeled your inspiration before, you can do it again?”

But over the last few weeks, I really felt it. It was a literal block that was stopping me from sitting down and articulating my thoughts. Whatever was flowing out of me before came to an immediate halt the second I landed in Cairo. Like a faucet being turned off, I didn’t know how to organize my thoughts or process what was happening around me.

Cairo is not for the fainthearted. It’s gritty, loud, and chaotic. The kind of place that immediately takes over your thoughts and pulls them towards it. Like a big neon sign saying “PAY ATTENTION TO ME” that’s flashing in front of you at all times.

I found myself unable to think about anything apart from what was in front of me (both a gift and a curse). I was so immersed in every moment that by the time the day was done, all I could muster up the strength to do, was rest.

After a week of this, the guilt started creeping in. The guilt that I wasn’t doing enough. Not writing enough, not keeping up with my friends enough, not checking Linkedin enough, not focusing on my spiritual practice enough. My lovely inner roommate was back in full force “Didn’t you take time off so you could work on new things? Didn’t you say you wanted to meditate every morning? Why haven’t you done a yoga class yet?"

Why was I having such a hard time living up to the expectations I had set for myself and feeling immense guilt for not doing the things I had set out to do? How could I feel like I’m not doing enough yet my day is filled with endless activities?

I needed a perspective change. To snap myself out of the chatter in my head that wouldn’t shut up about me not being perfect. I needed to embrace the very thing I had set out to do in the first place. Flowing. Doing nothing. Not resisting. Letting the universe take me where it wanted me to go (this lesson is clearly being taught to me in many different ways). There were other things happening around me that my attention was needed for AND THAT’S OKAY!

But then Fayoum happened… and all of a sudden, the inspiration started pouring in. 

Contemplations:

🧿 What guilt do you carry around?
🧿 What expectations have you put on yourself that may need to be re-evaluated?

Wanderlust Gems 🏞️

Inspiring humans, art, history, nature, adventures and new discoveries 🚀 

The second I entered Fayoum, I felt an utter sense of peace. Another magical land had found me. I could feel the energy shift and my heart quiet the second we started to witness the green oasis before us. 

After being in Cairo for 2 weeks, I had forgotten what it felt like to hear silence. And this isn’t just any silence. It’s desert silence. In my 10 years of living in Cairo, I had never experienced this. You could hear a pin drop. The thoughts in my head immediately changed tone. I could hear loving voices inside me, calm and gentle allowing me to soak in the beauty around me. My nervousness dissipated and all I could feel was an immense amount of gratitude for what lay before me. 

It was really interesting to notice that both my husband and I felt extreme exhaustion the second we checked into our hotel and passed out. Like a huge weight was being lifted both mentally and physically, we felt like we were being healed just by being there.

The history of Fayoum, an old agricultural land set around Lake Qarun, holds an ancient story of lost treasure and buried kings. It was breathtaking and I’m going to let the pictures speak for themselves. We crammed a lot into our 2 days. 

From checking out Lazib Inn:

To picking vegetables:

To exploring the doors and artwork of Fayoum:

To visiting Tunis Village, which has risen as a center for pottery making thanks to Evelyn Porret:

To visiting Wadi el Hitan, a UNESCO World Heritage Site and Tatooine lookalike (for my Star Wars fans), with fossils of the earliest form of whale:

To glamping in the desert at Remal el Rayan:

To sandboarding:

To quad biking:

And finally, to watching the sunrise:

Every single person we met in Fayoum insisted on us coming to their home for a meal or drink. It was in their very nature. Extreme hospitality and love for their country. All they wanted was for people to walk away as amazed with Egypt as they were. Their smiles and good vibes were palpable and we left feeling loved, calm, and in awe of everything we had just experienced. 

I am departing Egypt this time around with the feeling that if I could succeed in showing people a side of this country that they wouldn’t have experienced on their own, then I would have succeeded in opening the tattered book directly to the pages of magic that leaves a reader wanting more. An idea is stirring within me that needs to be born. Time to get to work. ✨✨✨

High Resonance ✨ 

A song, podcast, author, movie, or book to keep you feeling that high resonance ✌️