May 22, 2023·edited May 23, 2023Liked by Whitney Barkman
This post really hits home, Whitney. We are conditioned from the beginning to want a certain life, have a specific set of goals that are uniformly accepted by the society and the second you try to deviate from that path, you will be deemed wrong or worse, you start to doubt yourself every step of the way. It's a strange pattern. I was happy to read your thoughts. Happy to see that you've found what truly matters to you and the comfort with which you're able to share it with the world. Sometimes, even acknowledging that bit can be an inner struggle for some. Thank you for this wonderful read 🤍
Hi Farah, thank you so much. I'm glad to hear how this resonated with you. There is absolutely so much doubt that arises when we deviate from the expected or "normal" path. I do see that trend slowly changing these days, with so many different paths being more accepted. But often, the slow and simple dreams are still considered to be not good enough.
I believe it is exactly the essence, the question of how we want to feel, above anything else. Because all those things we are supposed to want in this capitalist society, the house, the car, the family, mean nothing, if those things don't align with our feelings that make up our true dreams in the first place. Another wonderful post, thank you so much, Whitney 💛 Sending love, Natalia
So true Natalia, that those types of things mean absolutely nothing if they aren't in line with how we want to feel in our lives. Thank you so much for reading and sharing your thoughts. ♡
My wife and I moved to the mtns three years ago. Our lives have changed from hectic city living to the serenity of the quiet forest. The sound of the wind and the birds chirping. Absolute gratitude every day to be surrounded by Mother Earth. We appreciate the small moments of laughter and the cat and dog playing. Love, joy and internal peace is with us now more than ever. Whitney I love that you have found a place that speaks directly to you. We all need that gift of remembering who we truly are not what media and social pressures push us to be. Good for all of us that we’re finding the quiet places.
I love that you found your quiet space in the mountains, thank you for sharing that piece of your story. I am so glad to hear how we are finding these small moments of joy in more quiet spaces. ♡
This was lovely to read and your forest cabin dream sounds, well, dreamy!🌿These kinds of dreams are the realest to me - the ones about the way we live, the little joys, making space.... My biggest dream is to have more ease - in my health, my home, my work. More balance, I suppose. I'd like to write and photograph and make videos and work from home. I'd like to be able to stop teaching full time (love it but it's exhausting). Some of my dreams are as small as wanting a tidier home - a place for everything. I think the best thing about these sorts of dreams is that they could become real - one little joy at a time, they can become our real lives. That's pretty magical, isn't it? Hopefully we can both get there, one story, one joy at a time. ❤️
Thank you so much Charlene. I love your dream of having more ease, more balance, between all the aspects of your life. Ease is something I want more of also, not that we won't experience hard moments of course, but I am in the camp of believing that ease doesn't make it any less meaningful or worthy. I love that you highlighted how the best part of these types of dreams is that they can become real, I think that's what draws me to them as well. It's very magical to truly feel we can make little steps and make these dreams a reality. ♡
Ooh I love this, so much resonates with me. In my twenties I had such big dreams, I wanted ‘it all’ then as I became more successful I got more and more tired and eventually I burned out. This season in my life is about redefining success. What do I really want, I love the simple things. Like you say, it’s about how I want to ‘feel’ each day, instead of a list of accomplishments. Sometimes I get that inner conflict of not being enough... but I know this is external messages I’ve internalised and that I am walking my own path. I love that you share here it helps me remember my own desires for small dreams and that they are small and perfectly formed!
Thank you Dawn! I think it's so interesting to see that connection between working towards big dreams and ending up in some form of burnout - not to say that we should ever limit ourselves on what we want or believe that we can't achieve what we want in life. There are just so many factors to be considered when working towards something. The problem of being influenced by external sources is such a massive part of it, it's understandably so difficult to figure out what we really want, and also to disconnect from the pressure of what others think we should want.
This post really hits home, Whitney. We are conditioned from the beginning to want a certain life, have a specific set of goals that are uniformly accepted by the society and the second you try to deviate from that path, you will be deemed wrong or worse, you start to doubt yourself every step of the way. It's a strange pattern. I was happy to read your thoughts. Happy to see that you've found what truly matters to you and the comfort with which you're able to share it with the world. Sometimes, even acknowledging that bit can be an inner struggle for some. Thank you for this wonderful read 🤍
Hi Farah, thank you so much. I'm glad to hear how this resonated with you. There is absolutely so much doubt that arises when we deviate from the expected or "normal" path. I do see that trend slowly changing these days, with so many different paths being more accepted. But often, the slow and simple dreams are still considered to be not good enough.
I believe it is exactly the essence, the question of how we want to feel, above anything else. Because all those things we are supposed to want in this capitalist society, the house, the car, the family, mean nothing, if those things don't align with our feelings that make up our true dreams in the first place. Another wonderful post, thank you so much, Whitney 💛 Sending love, Natalia
So true Natalia, that those types of things mean absolutely nothing if they aren't in line with how we want to feel in our lives. Thank you so much for reading and sharing your thoughts. ♡
My wife and I moved to the mtns three years ago. Our lives have changed from hectic city living to the serenity of the quiet forest. The sound of the wind and the birds chirping. Absolute gratitude every day to be surrounded by Mother Earth. We appreciate the small moments of laughter and the cat and dog playing. Love, joy and internal peace is with us now more than ever. Whitney I love that you have found a place that speaks directly to you. We all need that gift of remembering who we truly are not what media and social pressures push us to be. Good for all of us that we’re finding the quiet places.
I love that you found your quiet space in the mountains, thank you for sharing that piece of your story. I am so glad to hear how we are finding these small moments of joy in more quiet spaces. ♡
This was lovely to read and your forest cabin dream sounds, well, dreamy!🌿These kinds of dreams are the realest to me - the ones about the way we live, the little joys, making space.... My biggest dream is to have more ease - in my health, my home, my work. More balance, I suppose. I'd like to write and photograph and make videos and work from home. I'd like to be able to stop teaching full time (love it but it's exhausting). Some of my dreams are as small as wanting a tidier home - a place for everything. I think the best thing about these sorts of dreams is that they could become real - one little joy at a time, they can become our real lives. That's pretty magical, isn't it? Hopefully we can both get there, one story, one joy at a time. ❤️
Thank you so much Charlene. I love your dream of having more ease, more balance, between all the aspects of your life. Ease is something I want more of also, not that we won't experience hard moments of course, but I am in the camp of believing that ease doesn't make it any less meaningful or worthy. I love that you highlighted how the best part of these types of dreams is that they can become real, I think that's what draws me to them as well. It's very magical to truly feel we can make little steps and make these dreams a reality. ♡
Spot on👍🌟💕Many thanks🌸🌿🌱🌾
Thank you Brooke! I'm glad this resonated.
Ooh I love this, so much resonates with me. In my twenties I had such big dreams, I wanted ‘it all’ then as I became more successful I got more and more tired and eventually I burned out. This season in my life is about redefining success. What do I really want, I love the simple things. Like you say, it’s about how I want to ‘feel’ each day, instead of a list of accomplishments. Sometimes I get that inner conflict of not being enough... but I know this is external messages I’ve internalised and that I am walking my own path. I love that you share here it helps me remember my own desires for small dreams and that they are small and perfectly formed!
Thank you Dawn! I think it's so interesting to see that connection between working towards big dreams and ending up in some form of burnout - not to say that we should ever limit ourselves on what we want or believe that we can't achieve what we want in life. There are just so many factors to be considered when working towards something. The problem of being influenced by external sources is such a massive part of it, it's understandably so difficult to figure out what we really want, and also to disconnect from the pressure of what others think we should want.