If you’ve been following the blog for a while, you may remember that I like to celebrate my birthday by taking myself on an artist date.
Yesterday’s artist date for my 55th birthday may have been the best one yet. The purpose pendulum has swung in the direction of teaching and speaking over the past year, leaving less time for photography and writing. On my birthday, I gave myself the gift of reconnecting with my creative self, which I can only do when I’m alone. Introverts of the world UNITE (by yourself)!
Even though I have two speaking events to prepare for this weekend, I prioritized my birthday gift to myself — the gift of time and no schedule, other than meeting my son for lunch in the city. It’s peak cherry blossom time in Washington, DC, and I missed them last year, so my destination choice was easy, especially given the gorgeous weather.
The cherry blossom photos will come next week. Today I’ll let some other shots tell the story of how my artist date left me with new perspectives, new hope, and new energy, as well as deep appreciation for the journey behind me.
I didn’t quite catch the sunrise as I had thought I might try to do, but practiced letting go of the “shoulds” when I arrived at the Tidal Basin and saw the many photographers already out with their tripods. At 7:15 am, I was already “late” to the party. I noticed the judgmental language and let go of it, knowing that unexpected gifts would come from my unique timing. Discovering free unlimited parking near the Haines Point golf course was my first gift of the day.
My walk to the Tidal Basin on the Virginia side of the Potomac gave me a view of the new Wharf District on the DC shoreline, so I practiced some cherry blossom shots with a less traditional urban background. I don’t normally do this type of photography, so it was fun to experiment.
Love this sign! So applicable to life! Great reminder to keep our eyes open and our attention trained. Did you know that meditation trains your attention? I’ve definitely had fewer bonks on the head since practicing mindfulness for the past ten years!
A stranger approached me and said, “I took a picture of you taking pictures. I hope that’s OK.”
“No problem!” I told her. “Can you take the same picture with my phone?” I told her it was my birthday and that I was celebrating by just being with myself doing what I love to do.
She said, “I do that too! I go alone to museums on my birthday!”
Haha! Museums are a favorite artist date destination of mine (here’s that blog post about it again).
When I was finished with the cherry blossoms, I returned to the van and switched out my camera bag for my laptop bag. I then noticed a boat making its way to a little dock I was walking by and discovered it was a FREE water taxi from Haines Point to The Wharf Cool!
The power of an artist date is that you don’t have to worry about anybody else’s wishes or plans. I let go of my original idea to work at the Library of Congress (beautiful libraries hold a special place in my heart) and decided instead to just hop onto the water taxi and see where it would take me. How liberating to simply let go and trust the day’s unfolding!
I shared the ride with a young mom and her two boys. Her contortions trying to get a good shot of them reminded me so much of myself close to 20 years ago.
After landing at The Wharf, I stopped at a coffee shop for a snack and to do a little fun work, celebrating the flexible work life I’ve cultivated. Coffee shops, too, hold a special place in my heart, established during my college years in Seattle.
After placing my order, I discovered I had left my wallet in my camera bag in the van. But the lovely young man with lots of tattoos gave it to me for FREE, even without knowing it was my birthday! My experience is that the more you let go and trust the process, the more often these types of awesome things happen.
I would be taking Lyft to meet my son for lunch, so I wouldn’t need cash. Decided to throw caution to the wind and forget about the wallet for the rest of the day.
After an al fresco lunch at Shouk (highly recommend!), I was grateful not only for the fabulous food but also that my son a) knows how to pick a great restaurant, b) has a job that he loves and the accompanying income to buy me lunch on my birthday, and c) is so interesting to talk to that I forgot to take a picture with him.
Last stop of the day was a tour of the WeWork office where his office company is based. What a positive, uplifting professional environment! With WeWork shared office spaces and others like them popping up all over the country, I truly am optimistic that our young people will be able to save the planet.
I spent a few minutes at WeWork charging my phone before the trek back to The Wharf and water taxi. I checked the Lyft price and it had already skyrocketed as rush hour approached, so I decided I would walk the 1.5 miles that Google Maps had calculated. Another revelation: I’m 55 and the thought of a 1.5 mile walk at the end of an already long day wasn’t the least bit intimidating. YAY!
So off I went. Here are a few sights along the way…
The pleasure I took in breathing in baby Everly at the end of my artist date is proof of the importance of parents taking creative time for themselves every once in a while. Everybody benefits! So don’t go thinking that you need to wait to be an empty nester to head out on your own. I’ve been doing this for many years and it always made me a happier (and therefore better) mom, wife, daughter, friend, and community member.
Thanks for revisiting my birthday artist date with me! This one felt especially significant. I’m not only celebrating 55 years on this earth as of April 4, 2019, I’m also celebrating 10 years since my cancer diagnosis. It was this month ten years ago that the most transformative chapter of my life began, the story I share in Blooming into Mindfulness.
I am SO grateful for every person and life experience that has gotten me here. Thank you for the overwhelming flood of happy birthday wishes I’ve received from family, friends, and followers. Most precious to me are the notes from those of you going through a tough time right now, sharing that my work inspires you to keep moving forward. Blue sky is always above the clouds. Beauty is present in every stage of the bloom process.
Cherry blossom photos next week!
Thanks for your patience with my uneven blogging schedule these days. Still getting my sea legs juggling speaking, teaching, writing, and photography. I’m just going with the flow. It makes life a lot more fun! The one constant is my meditation practice, which keeps me grounded, focused, resilient, and open to joy in the present moment. Curious about how to develop your own daily practice? My next 30-Day Mindfulness Meditation Challenge begins on May 1. Check it out here.
