It all began with this image.
I ripped it out of a magazine nearly two years ago while creating a dream board in January to inspire me throughout the year. Instead of gluing it down onto a poster board or journal, I tucked it inside my red daily journal.
The image is of a young woman dressed in a flowing, floral, orange dress with a long pink scarf wrapped in her ponytail. The coral brick buildings and terracotta tiled roofs in the foreground immediately grabbed my attention.
I was captivated by that scene.
I was drawn into that picture. I wanted to travel there. I wanted to be her.
Of course, I recently cut my hair short again, and I am probably twice her age but that isn’t the point. I wanted to travel and go on an adventure. I wanted her essence.
Easy, breezy
That became my motto for the past two years. Each morning, I pulled out the image and gazed at it. I stepped into the scene and imagined myself standing there. It served as my daily reminder to enter into each day with a new attitude.
Lighter, flexible, and full of joy
Instead of pushing, planning, and controlling my day, I chose to align myself with something different. I looked for small ways to bring more of this easy, breezy attitude into my day.
Running errands became my alone time to listen to the Zero to Travel or Traveling with Kristin podcasts to expand my knowledge of new places and people living alternative lives. This fueled my curious, wandering spirit and opened me up to new ideas of travel and lifestyle.
I began listening to music on my portable speaker while doing dishes (by hand) and cleaning up the kitchen.
I wandered the woods and investigated the plants and herbs that grow there.
Taking Easy, breezy with me to Italy
While in Italy, I left my daily red A5 Stalogy notebook at home for three thin brown kraft paper journals. I tucked them into my green messenger bag along with a clear pouch of stubby pencils and a small plastic sharpener. Restricting my supplies was challenging, yet it was important for me not to overthink it.
I love looking at the travel notebooks that people create. I envisioned filling a new watercolor notebook with beautiful images from the trip. I even bought a tiny, handmade wooden watercolor palette before the trip. Unfortunately, I wasn’t able to pick it up due to the Hurricane. ☹️
I signed up for a 💯 day challenge with Meghan Genge before heading out for Italy. I do love a challenge, and I wanted some support to create and maintain a daily creative practice again.
Since I would be traveling, I decided to keep my practice simple and inspired by my morning practice. I brought my Mini Roots & Wings oracle cards by Kat Ryalls and boarded the plane.
Each morning, I would ask the question, “What would inspire me to stay easy, breezy today?” I quickly sketched the image on the card in the corner of my page and proceeded to color it in. A single word was written at the bottom of the card to prompt my short writing, each one unique to the moment in time.
Good Fortune
Crafty
Wish
Alignment
When the weather allowed, I sat outside at a tiny, coffee table outside the Airbnb that we rented in Spello, Umbria. The view was amazing and I greeted my neighbors “bonjourno” as they walked past. I felt that I had stepped into that image.
I was that girl, taking in the sights and absorbed in Italy.
In a world obsessed with vision boards and manifestation, we rarely talk about the quiet magic that happens when you carry a single image close to your heart. This magazine scrap became my daily compass, teaching me that sometimes the gentlest path to transformation is simply showing up, day after day, to gaze at your dreams.
Every morning for two years, I opened my red journal to look at her—the woman in the orange dress, her pink scarf catching the wind. Not because I wanted to be her, but because somehow, she already knew who I was becoming.
The daily ritual of aligning my intention toward easy, breezy allowed for a gentle transformation in my life.
In Italy, I celebrate the joy of letting go of expectations and control. I allowed myself to be present in the moment and soak it all up.
The goal was never to become someone else but to uncover a part of myself that was there all the time. She just needed some attention and a reminder that she was there.
Have you ever connected to an image or feeling that manifested in your life? Come into the comments and tell me about it. I am always curious to learn more about you.
Talk to you soon,
❤️ Blythe
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