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Snapshots from Greece (and a new blog design!)

Snapshots from Greece (and a new blog design!)

by Daisy Rosales | May 11, 2015 | Europe, Greece, International

When I was 17, I traveled to Greece with my high school. Due to my academic foray into the Classics, I was able to look at columns and rocks and actually know– if only just a bit more than the average tourist– what it all meant. Wandering through ancient...

daisysrosales
Joy and sorrow have characterized my time here. We Joy and sorrow have characterized my time here. We’ve been working with two local groups in Quito for months on a program that integrates indigenous storytelling and community narration as a healing process through covid. To see the participants bravely share their stories yesterday reminded me that access and ownership are not the same. Access is taking something and putting it back. Ownership is making it yours and sharing it with others who need it too, helping them make it theirs. 🤲 As covid rates continue to rise in Latin America, Ecuador has imposed lockdowns once again. I’ve experienced in my flesh the visceral pressures of navigating safety risks, health risks, and changing restrictions, alongside our partners who laid off half their team this year. In the words of one of them, “we tell our stories to know who we are, and we take action that moves our community forward.” 🌎 I’ve received the gift of exploring nearby to better understand the ecosystem where so many of our partner communities have their roots. I find it all to be stunningly connected: care for the earth, exploration of ancestry, and the healing power of stories. Grateful to have been a guest and the countless kind individuals who have accompanied and befriended me here over the years. May restoration be yours. ✨
It was a year when the mountains we already hoped It was a year when the mountains we already hoped to scale became even taller, and more treacherous. But the things we’ve always stood for remain good and true. Generous open-heartedness. Compassionate healing. Humble curiosity. Unconditional love. Unstoppable hope. Here’s to another year guided by what we hold most dear. Happy 2021! 🕯🏔
Scenes from the weekend: A cascade of maple leaf h Scenes from the weekend: A cascade of maple leaf hands outstretched on thanksgiving. Finding ampleness and generosity by the ocean. Kitten love. Grateful for 12 years of friendship with Aaron. I wish I had more answers as we prepare to enter 2021. Instead I have endless questions and a set of convictions, and it will have to be enough. What are you most hoping for this session?🌲
“Solitude eventually offers a quiet gift of grac “Solitude eventually offers a quiet gift of grace, a gift that comes whenever we are able to face ourselves honestly: the gift of acceptance, of compassion, for who we are as we are. ... Beyond the pain of self-discovery there is a love that does not condemn us but calls us to itself.” — Parker Palmer Lately it’s been easy to find myself feeling alone, overwhelmed by uncertainty, and feeling immensely inadequate. And my natural inclination is to add to the plate: more meetings, more contacts, more promises, more impact. But instead, this past chaotic month has forced me to ask myself what is enough. It’s a self examination that requires pondering— a pause of thoughtful inquiry that doesn’t come easily when we are dampening our insecurities with more. I don’t need to tell you how long my days are or how many people we are working to support. I need to confess that staying honest with my own humanness and self awareness has been hard. I’ve turned to the wisdom of forests that have stood for centuries, watching empires rise and fall. Introspection reminds me that our eternal hope is not easily forged and therefore cannot be easily destroyed. 🌲
The moment before the world shut down, the beautif The moment before the world shut down, the beautiful town of Bukhara welcomed us with open arms I’ll never forget. Looking back on this trip, I’m reminded that things are true even if I can’t see them. Partnering with global teams can be so challenging when we can’t share a cup of tea, a breath of air, or a walk through the neighborhood. But it doesn’t mean our collaboration isn’t real. I sometimes spend all day working in the same spot at our dining table, wondering if we’ve built something that matters, that makes a difference. It’s through the subtleties that I’m reminded we really have moved forward: the extended invitation, the tearful moment, the softening of face muscles that were tight at the beginning of a call. It all matters. Don’t give up. ✨
Remembering RBG has meant more than recognizing wh Remembering RBG has meant more than recognizing what I now take for granted: commanding equal pay for my work, pursuing a meaningful profession while becoming a parent if I so choose, knowing single dads (yes!) receive support if they become sole caretakers. 🌊 Her life also reminds me and encourages me in my conviction that our life purpose goes beyond me & mine vs you & yours. Beyond just taking care of my family, important as that is. Beyond defending myself, as much as I need to do that too. 💫 We have a calling to fight for, love, enable, restore, encourage, and accompany others. It’s this daily choice that makes it possible for future generations to wake up to a reality that today scrapes the boundaries of impossible. 💗
This is 30! Entering a new decade in the midst of This is 30! Entering a new decade in the midst of a pandemic, ravaging fires, social unrest and an uneasy democracy. I’m redefining what it means to honor our days and years with what matters. ✨ Can we access gratitude at a time like this? Can we love others at a time like this? Can we hold onto hope as we work toward human flourishing at a time like this?🌊 I want my 30s to say a wholehearted yes. Sending you love from a fullness I can’t explain and peace that surpasses my understanding. 💗
California is on fire (again? still?) and no, I am California is on fire (again? still?) and no, I am not currently at the beach. This photo simply reminds me to work on that inner retreat— the place where restoration happens no matter where we are physically, anchored in our breath and the peace that has been given to us. It takes discipline to create that restorative space. It takes deep-rooted hope to return to it and experience joy. 🌊 What will you do (or not do) to rest and be found by rest this weekend?
When was the last time you experienced restoration When was the last time you experienced restoration? Lately I’ve been feeling like a wrung-out towel and falling prey to thought patterns that serve neither me nor our mission. It’s hard to stay encouraged when our mindset is productivity defined by hitting external milestones, delivering products, and getting recognized. 🤑 But the truth I’ve been learning is this: none of the work we do has any meaning or integrity if we refuse to look up from the grindstone. In fact, it is also work to take the view from the balcony. It is also work to reflect on where we really want to go with all this. And it is definitely work to do the learning and self-reformation that this deep alignment requires. 🦋 Friends, let’s not discount the work that — in the short term, remains unseen— but in the long term, makes all the difference. Seek restoration. ♥️
Your reminder not to let uncertainty destroy your Your reminder not to let uncertainty destroy your vision for the future. 🌊 Recently people have been inviting me to articulate my vision for @startbrio as its cofounder and ED. We’ve also been working on a personal vision for life after Aaron’s postdoctoral fellowship this year, and more broadly what this next decade will hold. 🗓 And the truth is this: I either find myself deflecting the question with “who even knows what next month will hold?”... or trying to articulate a small shadow of my vision— dwarfed by the confines and constraints I currently feel. ☔️ We are inundated with reasons to grieve daily. But that grief doesn’t have to come at the cost of courageous imagination. I don’t know all the ways in which this year has held you back, but I do know this— we have a future existence that is not just “under these circumstances”, but under the wings of a god who is making us whole. 🦋 Grief: yes. Playing small and scared: no.
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Disclaimer: Simplicity Relished is a for profit blog. Any company that I collaborate with is chosen by me and chosen because they fit the theme and readership of my blog. Copyright: If you see something you like here, please be encouraged to share it along with a link back to my site. All of the images and content here, unless otherwise noted or linked, is my own original work.