adventure – Estelle Brodeur

Awareness in the Saddle: A Fall Ride

In September, I rode an amazing horse named Duke. It was a birthday gift from my husband. A wonderful one. I was surprised at how the ride began for me. When I sat in the saddle, I felt fear. This was new…all my younger life I rode horses and ponies. Never afraid. So I was perplexed by this new emotion in the saddle.

We rode for 3 hours on rocky, muddy, pine-strewn wooded trails in Nelson County, Virginia. I realized early on that my breath was going to be my friend, and so was this horse. After I settled in, kept noticing my physical sensations, breathing, while keeping heels down and hands relaxed, I realized this was a trust experience. Trusting both myself and Duke. Later, when slipping down a muddy embankment, I asked our guide Kenton what the best way to approach this. Kenton said, “Trust your horse, let him go, he knows what to do”. Sure enough, Duke did. His feet were steady, breath deep and constant.

I took away visceral memories from this day…the smell of horses so familiar to me, what I learned from watching their breath, how I brought my mindfulness, yoga, and body awareness into a joyful, challenging experience. The thoughtful gift from Jim.

That’s what coaching does. Helps you trust who you are, what you value, what health–your whole health— means to you. Coaching is like having someone else in a tandem kayak, or riding along beside you as you gather the reins and move toward mindful awareness of goals.

Growing Wings

How do your thoughts limit your life? What if you acted “as if” you really could accomplish a dream?

In A Year Of Living Your Yoga, author and teacher Judith Hanson Lasater suggests we take time to listen to ourselves in order to move closer to what matters most to us. She provides the self-reflection prompt “What would I do if I believed I could?”

Practice and Plan

One way to move closer to making dreams actionable is committment to time, even 5 minutes, and practice a form of meditation that you like. Then, write down the answer to Lasater’s question. Record your thoughts in a voice memo if this feels more like your style.
Next, write down or speak one small, measurable step that you can accomplish today that will bring you closer to what you want. This could be as simple as sharing your dream with someone who you know will be supportive. Or, it may be putting your words somewhere you can see them everyday. Be creative, make this yours.

We all experience limiting thoughts and beliefs. We can choose to pay attention to them and move closer to who we really are, which is, according to yogic philosophy, the true goal of yoga.

Being Alive

Consider this expressive writing prompt: What makes you soar?

High-impact Experiences

When I read UVA Today earlier this morning, I was reminded of my recent vacation to the North Carolina portion of the Blue Ridge Mountains. Now, first of all, I must tell you that this is partly an area of humor in my marriage, as my husband likes to rib me a bit when I tell others I’m from the mountains of Virginia. He tells folks he’s from the part of Northern Virginia that’s now paved.

What reminded me of my vacation in this article is the concept of high-impact learning, or what some would call “peak” experiences. Our trek last month was special because of it’s simplicity and recreation of an epic trip in 2007 to the Pisgah National Forest. The view at the Shining Rock Wilderness is the photograph on the homepage of my website. During our September 2013 trip, we retraced our steps on hikes, discovered new paths, along streams and ambling rivers. We found swimming holes and towns we thought we knew, and laughed when we were mistaken. We hiked in dense fog, and clear skies. We didn’t even bring our mountain bikes, because I discovered my brakes were inoperable shortly before leaving town. We cooked by the fireside every night, and enjoyed sitting around watching the flames and warming up. We were car camping, and in bear country, so the need to shower and change clothes before getting in the tent added to my sense of adventure for sure.

I took photographs of hay bales, clouds, mountains, the two of us, insects, wildflowers, rocks. I brought home a few geological samples, depicted here. I accidentally erased all of my photographs from the trip, yet all the memories remain. I can feel the fog, the warmth of the fire, hear the laughter and a lot of silent mountain mornings. I can smell the coffee perking on the campstove, the pancakes cooking, the maple syrup oatmeal. I can feel my boots, and the same pair of shorts I wore for a week. Yes, it was high-impact.

New Vista

Have you ever had the experience that trying something new can open up possibilities that astound you? Can you nudge yourself a little? What is your mantra for the year? Same ol’ or something different? What would life be like if you did just one thing that may be really exciting, fun? What if you brought a bit more flexibility, adaptability, love of self and others into your life? How can you allow for adjustments in your plan for 2011? Now that January is fully here, is there anything you’d really like to get started on? Do you have a buddy to help you? Tell someone about your dreams! What are you waiting for?

Celebrations

I am learning more and more to celebrate…it’s fun, after all, and a great way to share joy. I am celebrating my ACC credential, earned in September from the International Coach Federation (ICF). I am so very grateful to you, my clients, past and present, who have chosen me as your coach. I love this work and feel so fortunate to be in your lives. Thank you, thank you. And thank you to my fantastic loving family who listens to me, encourages me, and celebrates with me!

Something New

How can I use fun to summon courage? I thought about that while signing up for a two-day beginning white water kayaking class. Needless to say, I didn’t ponder the question much after I got on the river; after all, I was in the moment having a blast…and being a little scared at the same time. I knew our top-notch instructors were our safety net, so all I had to do was go down the river. And really, that was my choice too rather than an imperative. One of my teachers, Heather, had a most useful creed- “paddle and smile!” All of what we learned was done gradually, in small meaningful steps which we were always asked if we were ready to do. That’s what I love about coaching…it’s empowering to be invited to experience new ways of feeling more brave and adventurous to go towards whatever we desire in life! Thanks Heather, Bryan, and Daniel…you are all amazing guides.