the patient spider catches its prey

by nathaliedanielleLeave a Comment on the patient spider catches its prey

Lately I feel I’ve been tested by the ever-so-elusive quality of patience. Over the last year I have felt this yearning desire and readiness for some personal and professional moves to occur. More concretely, I have a dream to live and work in Latin America, and I have felt the pull for a few years. I’ve even identified a specific opportunity and thoughtfully presented a proposal to realize my aspirations with absolute certainty it would transpire, and then I suffered the emotional blow when it did not. The reason: the timing was not quite right. In the moment, of course I felt the sting of disappointment and “woe is me.” My dramatic, ego-driven thought was that if it didn’t happen on my timeline, there would never be another chance.

I’m starting to learn that patience truly is a virtue, however. Last weekend I marveled as I watched an equestrian friend of mine prepare for a horseback ride. We were in the North Georgia Mountains and she invited me to accompany her; as I followed her to the barn where she had her horses boarded, I expected that we would simply hop on the horses and go. Little did I know the elaborate and time-consuming process that would follow: from preparing the trailers (we were not in fact “hopping on”, but rather driving the horses in trailers to the trail where we would later ride), to wrangling the horses from the pasture, to brushing them, cleaning out their hooves, then wrangling them again into the trailers…and all this before even saddling them up. The whole preparation process took about 2 hours – which was longer than our ride itself. I admired the patience this must require on my friends’ part. When I mentioned it, she responded just how much she enjoyed being with the horses. The preparation and “clean up,” so to speak, was as much a joy as the ride itself.

For me, this revelation was stunning, yet inspiring. As long as I can remember, I have been someone who hurries through life, always thinking about the end result of what I’m doing and the next task to complete. Admittedly, I am missing out on so much beauty in the now. Perhaps that’s what both attracts me and simultaneously drives me crazy about traveling to two of my favorite countries – Spain and Argentina. I’ve spent an extensive amount of time as a student and professional in both places, so I’ve had the opportunity to observe and live the cultural differences with respect to time and patience. But it wasn’t until I was reading about culture the other day that I saw these differences defined in black and white. In their work entitled Riding the Waves of Culture, social scientists and authors Dr. Fons Trompenaars and Dr. Charles Hampden-Turner present “dilemmas” or alternatives that illustrate the essential tensions between cultures.  “Sequential cultures” like the U.S. and Japan see time as a linear progress and an important part of life. Planning, keeping appointments, and making productive use of time are highly valued. The future is more important than the past. “Synchronic cultures”, on the other hand, see time as large enough to accommodate multiple activities simultaneously. They can also accommodate delays if a change in schedule is necessary to support a relationship. The past and present are equally if not more important than the future. Spain and Argentina are definitely the latter, which is evidenced by a mere stop at almost any restaurant in either country. Often you have to stand up and chase the waiter down to bring you more bread, wine, or the check at the end of the meal.

As much as this irritates me, maybe that is what subconsciously attracts me to the Latin culture. I admire the beauty of how they truly live in the present moment. They aren’t thinking about getting the check because they are so immersed in the food, company and conversation. This innate patience is a quality I myself have been trying to cultivate over the last year through a yoga and meditation practice. In meditation I often catch my mind wandering to the clock or the items on my to-do list (or the content of my next blog post!) and have to remind myself to just breathe into the present moment. Just last week, in fact, my yoga teacher was reinforcing the importance of consciously moving through the poses: how yoga is not about the end result (the pose), but it’s about how we get there. The practice has made me focus more on the present and also be more patient with myself as I am humbled by the physical and mental challenge. Yet, the joy I have experienced when I do finally accomplish a certain “milestone” pose like crow or an unassisted headstand is profoundly rewarding.

Paulo Coelho, the famous Brazilian author, said that patience is so important because it makes us pay attention, which became profoundly evident last weekend as I was observing my friend preparing the horses for our ride. As I was leaning against a fence near the barn, I noticed a large and intricately woven spider web. The spider itself was tucked up in the corner under the lip of the barn roof, patiently waiting for its prey. The image of the spider and the web struck me. As I personally struggle with the line between patience and complacency, when to take action and when to wait, I was moved by the lesson of the spider. You have to put in the work – to weave the web of your dreams and aspirations – but then have the patience and trust to wait for the outcome to manifest. And when it does, rest assured that it is in the perfect time with adequate preparation to feed on the sustenance of your soul.

a bite of the big apple

by nathaliedanielleLeave a Comment on a bite of the big apple

New York City: The Big Apple, The Capital of the World, The Empire City…

Surely NYC is one of the best cities in the world, with endless possibilities just outside your door. It’s the mecca of opportunity, right? There’s something about its vibration that just makes you feel like you can conquer anything – at least until you narrowly avoid being hit by a manic cab driver or until you get a proper cursing for stepping in the way of a very-important business man on his way to his even more important meeting.

I’m certainly not out to criticize a city that I admittedly love to visit. In fact, I just returned from a fantastic long weekend with one of my best friends who is currently living in vibrant downtown NYC. We walked, dined, shopped, and even caught a Broadway show. We were living the dream. But I can’t ignore a feeling that I have often experienced, which was reinforced through my conversations with other young professionals living in the city. There are so many people to meet, places to go, and stimuli simultaneously entertaining your senses, yet the irony is how easy it is to feel alone. New York has a culture of opulence and abundance. Either you have it (insert desired object, job, or person here), or you are aspiring to attain it. From the constant model and actress sightings to the restaurants that book out months in advance, the message is clear: see and be seen. Even exercising is trendy. I attended my first Soul Cycle spin class and I felt like I was joining an exclusive club of young, attractive perfectionists validating themselves by their over-priced workout regime. I’m always game for some intense group fitness, but instead of enriching my soul as one might expect from the name, I felt like the sucker dropping $35 on the 45-minute class, let alone the added cost of shoes and water.

The extremes and dichotomy in the messages is blatantly obvious simply by walking down the street; every other door is a restaurant or boutique eatery offering tantalizing treats for every taste. I was overwhelmed by the abundance of gelato, cupcakes, pastries, pretzels, fro-yo, food trucks (I could go on…) enticing me on every street corner. The prevailing thought running through my head was “I want it all.” And that feeling extended beyond the food; the clothes, bags, shoes and jewelry all sat temptingly in the storefront windows just begging for a new home in my closet. If money were no object and I actually indulged in all those delicacies, I would have to buy a new wardrobe every season just to fit my expanding wasteline.

So what’s wrong with this picture? First of all, I should reiterate that I love to visit this city and I am so blessed to be able to occasionally go and truly live it up. I embrace all that New York offers, but if I’m being honest, I leave reminded just how important it is to find inner stillness and peace. Unless you can learn to be an observer, objectively bearing witness to the hustle and bustle without getting swept up into it, loneliness can easily zap all of your loving energy and desire for exploration. Visiting New York reminds me that I can’t give into the temptation of having it all. Really, I need to be it all and be enough – and the rest is just noise (often in the form of a taxi driver honking and yelling to get the F*** out of the way!).

a taste of soul sustenance

by nathaliedanielle2 Comments on a taste of soul sustenance

Hello reader, I’m Nathalie. I have to admit upfront that I’m a little terrified to publish this. I guess the thought of an invisible audience silently or not-so-silently judging me from behind their computer screens is intimidating. Yet, something is calling me to begin this public foray into writing and documenting my experiences. There is always an initiation and a learning curve with any new hobby, so bear with me as I educate myself on the blogging world and, ideally, improve this blog over time.

I am writing this first post on my 28th birthday, which feels appropriate because I believe a birthday marks a new year of life and fresh beginnings. I titled this blog Soul Sustenance because it celebrates everything in life that brings me joy and balance, and what better time to embrace, explore and share it all with the world than on a celebratory day?

Let me explain more about what drives me, which is really the essence of this blog:

  1. food (life’s literal sustenance): I can’t deny it, I love to eat. Lately I’ve been doing a lot of introspection and actively observing when I experience joy, and most of those moments in my life revolve around food. It’s not just the food that I savor; it’s how food has an incredible power to bring people together, stimulating conversations, expressions of love and connection. Aside from the actual eating, I enjoy the act of researching restaurants, curating my list of new places I want to try, and the adventure of dining somewhere for the first time. I witness the ambiance, absorb the energy of the other diners, evaluate the service of the wait staff, and of course, I hope to relish every flavor – from the wine to the dessert.  Throughout most of my adult life, I have avoided the act of cooking, shunning the idea of toiling in the kitchen for hours to make a meal for myself that will take me a fraction of the time to consume. Maybe it’s just a function of the current conditions of my life; I live alone, work a full-time job and generally consider myself to be an impatient person. Or perhaps, I am just a creature of convenience. I live less than five minutes from a Whole Foods, so why cook when I have an abundance of fresh, pre-prepared food just a few steps away after a long day? Nonetheless, while I still consider myself more of a diner than a chef, I am gradually starting to appreciate the art of cooking – at least when I have time. I acknowledge that there is something immensely gratifying about creating a tasty and nutritious meal, so perhaps there is more “sustenance” that I have yet to fully explore. Regardless of how and where I consume it, clearly food is one of my passions and it will continue to be a central focus as I explore new restaurants and recipes, and I share the joy it brings to my life through my writing.
  2. health & wellness: I started my active life as a dancer at the age of 3 and I’ve never stopped moving since. My choice of exercise and activities has expanded since then to include almost anything that gets my blood pumping. I have also taken an interest in the overall body and how it can change radically through exercise and nutrition. It’s convenient to love to be active when you have such an affinity for eating, but I don’t just exercise in order to justify eating more (although that’s fun too). The endorphin rush of finishing an intense spin class or even better, hiking a mountain in the fresh air of my home state of Colorado is a natural high that is hard to beat. I also love understanding how food fuels the body and impacts everything from energy levels to mood to physique. I read and research extensively on the topic so I plan to share some of my findings here.
  3. spirituality: What a loaded word. I believe everyone has their own experience and I’ve been spending the better part of the last few years defining what it means for me. I believe it’s a lifetime journey that I’m only just beginning, but I am starting to see themes and connections in every domain of my life. I’ve been finding my own spirituality through reading, meditating, and yoga, and I have truly found a passion for exploring the meaning of life and the experience of the higher Self. I can’t talk about these very physical manifestations of my joy through food and exercise without also contemplating the reason behind it all…
  4. service: …which leads me to the concept of service and living life with a purpose. If there’s one dominant lesson from my spiritual quest thus far, it is that we are all connected and no one person is an island. One of my favorite metaphors I read once is that living beings are like ice cubes. We appear separate and individual, but we are all comprised of the same elements and ultimately “melt” into the same glass of water. We need to support each other because nobody can achieve gratification and fulfillment alone. I live a very blessed life and I couldn’t imagine not sharing those gifts with others. More than anything, service offers a higher purpose that I mentioned before, and connects us to something beyond the realm of the ego. I believe that above all should be celebrated and shared.

So those are my passions, or the sustenance of my soul. I would be remiss not to mention one constant in my life that ties all these elements together, however, and that is the art of travel and exploring other cultures. I’ve spent my life chasing all that is foreign in both the professional and personal domains. I currently work in a company with a major presence in Latin America, and I am fortunate to travel often to some of the places I adore most in that region of the world. I also have a running list of new destinations, as I do with new restaurants, and nothing excites me more than planning my next trip. Through this blog I intend to explore what I consider to be the four pillars of a balanced life – food, health & wellness, spirituality, and service – in the context of other cultures and through my travels to new places. Each community, whether it’s my own current city of Atlanta or an indigenous population in the rainforest of Brazil, has its own expression of these elements and I plan to investigate them through my excursions.

Welcome to this journey with me and I hope it feeds your soul as much as it does mine. Namaste!