#6 LAUREL Monthly Soundlust: Courage
In life, there are things that just happen and then there are the things that happen beyond…
#6 LAUREL Monthly Soundlust: Courage
In life, there are things that just happen and then there are the things that happen beyond an act of courage. If last month we touched ground with the idea of Foundations for our regular curated playlist - a theme thatās expressing our āWhyā, our essence, our motivation -, the current edition goes about our āHowā and what it takes to build the life that we want, achieve the things that we dream of, find our balance and our own sense of happiness. Hereās the story of the 6th LAUREL Monthly Soundlust - Courage.
An act of courage
With the new LAUREL Monthly Soundlust out now, I got inspired by the theme of Courage and the words kept free falling from my fingers. In this short piece, Iād like to mention a few of the things that I was reminded of when writing the story of the song list.
#5 LAUREL Monthly Soundlust: Foundations
Inspired by the arrival of autumn, with all its glorious colors, its unique expressions of nature, but also by the way gardeners welcome it into their seasonal cycle of seeding and planting, this Octoberās edition of LAUREL Monthly Soundlust taps into the idea of slowly turning our focus inwards and see what really matters to us, what our lifeās foundation is made of and what further value we can add to it.
To wander and to live
Some of the things that bring me a great deal of joy in this life are reading, writing and being close to nature. Either Iām immersing in a good book, or putting ideas to paper (yes, paper first) and writing, or being outdoors in nature, thereās this wandering spirit that awakens inside of me and itās when I feel most alive. In this piece of writing that Iām about to share with you here, reminiscences from my recent travels in the mountains shyly intertwine with a few ideas found in my two favorite books, in quite a beautiful and serendipitous way.
#4 LAUREL Monthly Soundlust: Wander
Curious like a child, I take my eyes for a slow-motion spin to absorb all the beauty around me. The grandeur of the mountains and the never ending greenery filled my being with so much energy and sense of wonder, it completely left me in awe. Hence, this monthās chosen theme for LAUREL Monthly Soundlust - Wander - is inspired by our soulās evergreen desire to explore and āinsploreā, under the guiding pulse of nature.
#3 LAUREL Monthly Soundlust: Sunflower
May we welcome August with a special theme for LAUREL Monthly Soundlust - Sunflower. A symbol of the late summer landscape, of sunshine and positivity, of strength and hopefulness, of love and friendship, the sunflower is always seeking the light of the sun.
When the world seemed to slip away
The world has turned so unequivocally upside down, that a crescent sense of desperation kept sneaking its way into peopleās hearts. As much as I have fought against it, in the end it got to me too, in the form of many strong emotions, ranging from sadness, to fury, to anxiety, to hope, to optimism and energy to move mountains. Here is a personal take on mental health during the world’s difficult times and its effects on creativity, inspiration and overall energy.
Sunday Poem | In Summer Time, by Paul Laurence Dunbar
This weekās Sunday Poem is āIn Summer Timeā, by Paul Laurence Dunbar (1872 - 1906), one of the first African American poets who became known on a national level with his writings. āIn Summer Timeā beautifully depicts the slow nature of the summer days, in a very descriptive and contemplative manner, transcending the reader to a state of enjoyment and peacefulness.
Sunday Poem | “The Happiness of Home”, by Alice Hawthorn (alias of Septimus Winner)
The verses of the poem āThe Happiness of Homeā sprinkled a welcoming feeling of bliss and consolation, a sense of protection that you often find in the heart of a home, despite everything that might cause disruption in the outer world.
#2 LAUREL Monthly Soundlust: Home
As I was thinking what theme I should choose for this LAUREL Monthly Soundlust, it came to me in an instant, and not alone, but with a rainfall of emotions - Home. This one conveys an entire canvas of feelings and states of being, unique to each of us.