The Collapsing of Time

August 22, 2019 by Alannah Paren in Inspiration

Usually, this blog is a platform for me to try to provide tools that can help us all work towards a better future. Sometimes this entails reflecting on the past, and I have come to notice that I often paint this picture of “moving from the past,” which may have negative connotations. Through my recent travel and life experiences, I have been extremely appreciative of the past in a new light - I think it is healthy to recognize that this thread that I discuss as connecting us all as humans, is also one that spans time and generations.

Daintree Rainforest, Cairns, Australia // June 2019

One of the reasons that I use writing as my mode to reach others is because of the fact the written word has been used for ages, connecting us to the experiences and lives of those before us, as it will continue to do for centuries to come. There is a way in which seeing someone’s handwriting or digesting typed text that helps to provide an emotional feeling that ironically can almost not be put into words. I remember looking at my great-grandmother’s handwritten recipes and notes, which brought about a lot of feelings. In that moment, I not only cherished the beauty of how written works can withstand time and catapult the past into the present and the future, but I also felt as if I was in the presence of a distant piece of myself, recognizing that my existence could be traced back to the creator of this words in front of me.

Even more recently, I had a similar sensation when I went to the Daintree Rainforest in Cairns, Australia. My tour guide pointed out that the Daintree is the oldest rainforest, estimated to be 180 million years old, which meant that as I stood in the thicket of the lush greenery, I was in the same spot that dinosaurs used to roam. There was one tree in particular that shot far into the sky, towering over the rest. It was in that instant that I experienced the complete collapse of time. It was as if a film reel was playing in my mind at an incredible fast forwarding speed, taking me from the scene of a brachiosaurus munching on this tree’s leaves, through my current moment, and into the future of the next generation being mesmerized as they stand before this great treasure. I felt as though I had illuminated a mutual fragment of life that I now shared with beings far beyond my grasp of understanding. This thread that weaves together time helps us to also knit together all of existence. As much as I can advocate for us all to recognize this aspect of life, there is something incredible about actually feeling the sensation that you are a small, but vital, part in the greater scheme of the universe. And with that being said, the universe that we are a part of goes beyond the definitive periods of our personal lifetimes.

So essentially, this time I encourage us all to reflect on the past to understand where we are now, but in a manner that focuses on a level deeper than ourselves. Look beyond just your personal history – what did your ancestors go through so that you could be in this exact moment? What parts of your identity do you attribute to distant lands or ancestral experiences? Through pondering these questions, we might gain a better understanding of our context, as well as a clearer and broader conception for how we came to personify our identities. This in turn allows us to have a stronger motivation to appreciate the people we currently have in our lives, acknowledging the people who came before us, in addition to relishing in the current natural landscapes and recognizing that we play a crucial role in shaping the lives of generations to come. Choosing to be your best self and striving for this more positive society is a decision that impacts more than just the now; it builds upon the efforts of humanity and pledges to pay it forward to those who will follow in our footsteps.

Here’s to tracing the thread of our individual stitches and sewing a foundation that others can look back on with pride! xoxo

To my Mima (10/20/30 - 8/9/19) –My tenacity sprouts from the Cuban heritage that was so strongly rooted in you, and one day I hope to visit the land that you left behind so that your children and grandchildren would have better opportunities. I hope I will leave this planet in a state that is void of the hardships that people saw in your lifetime, and in doing so, I will never forget that I am in a position to have my voice heard and my words read thanks to my lineage who braved more than I could imagine. I will always treasure the keepsake of your handwriting that says: “Te amo siempre.”

How to Love in Every Situation

February 06, 2019 by Alannah Paren in Inspiration, Lifestyle

Happy February! In light of Valentine’s Day coming up, I wanted to do another special feature on “love.” Last year I wrote about a few things I had learned on the topic, but this year I want to write about something that I am still working on fully integrating into my own life - the idea that no matter how upsetting a situation is, you approach it with love. When we feel like we are dealing with someone on a different vibration than we are, or when we feel hurt by another person’s thoughts or actions, it is easy to turn to being unhappy, disappointed, and maybe even angry. However, these feelings are not productive in terms of mending and healing, which is why we must ask ourselves an important question: “How can I love in this situation?”

The world can be, and currently is, a very messy place, and in an effort to move forward in a more holistically positive direction, we need to begin to do as much as we can to guide our lives with love and empathy. Stepping back from situations and evaluating how you fit into whatever might be unfolding, is crucial in not only helping to protect your own heart and soul energy, but also in understanding how to handle such circumstances. Let’s say you are having a hard time seeing eye-to-eye with a friend, coworker, roommate, or family member. It’s easy to get riled up, to begin to plaster up the walls of your heart and mind, and to keep those thick layers of defense on for all future interactions. But what if, before you began to apply these shielding mechanisms, you actually expanded these channels? What if you took a look at the situation and realized, “Okay, this is how _____ feels, because of xyz…,” and you allowed yourself to simply bring some love and empathy into the situation? Now, not only have you saved yourself the burden of wasting energy on fortifying your shields, but you have also taken a third person perspective on the scene at hand, giving you the ability to see how the other person is approaching the situation and how you thus should respond.

This is not an easy task. And by no means does this mean that you have to agree with the person or feel unconditional love. All this practice is serving to do is to get us to in some capacity leak love into our every action, and the more love we exude, the more we will attract. For instance, despite having an emotional morning and having a lot weighing on my heart the other day, I decided to take a moment to myself in the car. I realized that my next agenda item – my weekly grocery shopping at Whole Foods – had no relation to the outside upsets I was dealing with, so I sat in my car and said to myself, “Alright universe, I am going to do my best to shed my fears, anger, and doubts, and just trust, manifest, and magnetize.” As soon as I stepped out of my car and went to grab a cart (with a very mustered, but nonetheless bold, smile on my face) I could feel love radiating. The carts seemed to be stuck together, and I was mid-struggle when a man came over and helped me out and reassured me that it wasn’t just me having difficulties. Once inside the store, I felt like everyone I passed was smiling in my direction, so I kept beaming back, to the point that eventually, my phony smile was really genuine. The feeling was surreal – all I had to do was decide to enter into the setting with love, and low and behold, there was love to be acknowledged and received. This just goes to show that the question of “How can I love in this situation?” is not just applicable in dealing with other individuals, but sometimes we need it for ourselves or for approaching general, public scenes as well.

At the end of the day, we just need to do our best at considering what we are carrying with us and how we can work on overcoming difficulties, as opposed to shutting ourselves off from solutions. Analyzing how we can be better individuals by better understanding those around us is essential to a more unified society that operates more effortlessly. Next time you find yourself welling up with frustration or scorn, try to evaluate how you and the other person may be living on different frequencies and how, even if it isn’t a familial or romantic love, you do have flickers of love to disperse to all souls. Allow love to flow through you, so that you may magnetize more into your life and also guard yourself from the repercussions that come from stopping up your love channels with frustration, upset, and other negativities. Feel free to reach out if you have suggestions, want to discuss something, or just need a listening ear! Have an amazing month of love!

Replacing the Notion of “Giving Up” with “Giving it a Try”

October 17, 2018 by Alannah Paren in Inspiration

First off, I cannot believe it has been nearly two months since my last post. While I wish I had been able to maintain my writing in the midst of moving back to school, academics, work, and everyday life, it appears I simply could not, but alas here I am, and with that, a testament to the theme of this post: not giving up. Lately I have being struggling to come to terms with the reality of my feelings versus the ideal of persevering and conquering all that I originally envisioned accomplishing. I think part of my long hiatus from writing has been due, in part, to this battle leaving me with such confusion that most of my days are spent with my mind going back and forth, back and forth, until by the time I have a moment to “breathe,” I am so exhausted and cannot begin to even synthesize my feelings into words. As I reflect on how taxing this confliction has been, I come to the conclusion that my vexations would cease to exist if I ignored the impression that people would judge me for failing to continue in paths that I have begun to pave for myself. It is in this moment that I realize that I, along with everyone else in this world, have the right to pursue things, and then come to the realization that these pursuits do not suit me in the ways I presumed they would. After all, how would we know things don’t fit unless we try them on?

I don’t want to presume that everyone feels this way, but often times, I feel pressured to stick things out to the end. In the past, there have been many times where I have wanted to give up – and by give up I mean down to the kind that makes life itself seem like an undesirable feat – but I always found a way to pick myself up enough times to get on level ground and keep going. Coming off of a wonderful summer and feeling as though I finally reached a point where I was utterly content with life, I was excited to embark on a fresh semester. Just over two months in and I find myself reanalyzing my life, asking myself where I went awry. Did I take on too much? Am I not confronting the underlying truth that this time around I can’t do it all? Is that okay, will people understand that I can’t juggle being a student, working, maintaining relationships, pursuing passions like writing and working out, and also having time to simply just be?

One thing is for sure, I know that not everyone can understand the internal battle waging inside of me, because there are some people who I know can relate to internal conflicts and then there are others who maybe don’t allow the judgments of others to interfere, relieving themselves of a certain level of intensity. In fact, I don’t even expect people to externally acknowledge this everyday combat I seem to be fighting, since after all, it is virtually invisible, even barely discernable by those with a keen sense of my habitual tones and mannerisms. But because I know this, I also recognize that it is up to me to decide to truly live for myself. Why should I care if someone views my change in directions, my gradual shift in focusing on what truly makes me happy and what is best for me? At the end of the day I am the one dealing with the emotional outcomes of my life decisions.

So what I am trying to say, is that if you ever feel like the walls of life are caving in, and you are starting to entertain a new idea that works to reverse previous choices, don’t feel as though you are agonizingly bound to wherever you currently are in life. There is beauty in the fact that we are ever evolving beings on journeys that allow us to learn and apply those experiences in a way that advances us towards what happiness looks like in our individual lives. Realize that sometimes you have to fully immerse yourself in order to assess from the inside whether or not something - a hobby, a book, a job, or a relationship – is indeed the best for you. And if you realize that its time to change course, honor yourself for trying and understand that you aren’t giving up, that instead it is just time to give something new a spin. You should never regret “time wasted” going in one direction if it does not end up being your final destination. There are reasons why we are guided through detours; who knows, maybe without the detour we would’ve hit a roadblock and never made it to where we were meant to go, or maybe the least direct routes are meant to give us perspective in order to fully appreciate the view at the end of it all. It is okay to make u-turns, accidentally take the wrong exits, or even to not heed the signs at all, but it is important to remember to tune into your internal GPS that will respond and reroute you in the right direction.

An Ode to “Eat, Pray, Love”

August 17, 2018 by Alannah Paren in Inspiration, Travel

For those of you who have never read Liz Gilbert’s “Eat, Pray, Love,” I highly suggest that you add it to your reading list (along with her book “Big Magic”!). When people ask me who my celebrity idols are, and mind you, I’ve never really been the fan-girl-type, I have three people I might suggest depending on my mood: comedian Ellen DeGeneres, chef Gordon Ramsay, and yes, author Elizabeth Gilbert. My wanderlust, spontaneous soul has always admired Gilbert’s story of leaving her conventional life in search of a deeper meaning, all while trusting in the universe’s divine guidance. My personal Instagram plays homage to the novel with categories dedicated to “Eat,” “P(l)ay,” and “Love.” Long story left un-shortened…. I revere Gilbert and her journey with all my heart.

One March night, after I had recently arrived back from my trip to Canada, I caught my mind spiraling with all the possibilities of where I could travel to next, and of course I couldn’t help but tease the possibility of getting up and just moving to a foreign country for a month without a plan, much like Gilbert. I jokingly said in my head, “Well at least I got the eating part out of the way,” as I reminisced on all the cheese platters and other rich foods I had consumed in Québec. It wasn’t until the next month that my trips to Israel and Hawaii were solidified. And once again, as I fell asleep I realized: my trip to Israel was going to be for soul searching and praying, while my trip to Hawaii was going to be spent in the company of my family, the people I love most. I had found the “Pray” and the “Love” pieces to my very own “Eat, Pray, Love” quest!

May and June rolled around, and I couldn’t have been more overjoyed at the idea of having traveled to three different unique destinations, all with their own purpose, in the span of under four months. First, in Canada, I indulged in heaps of cured meats with fruit preserves and buttery chocolate chip croissants, washed down with sweet wines and floral gins. Next, in Israel, I meditated, I pushed myself to overcome things I couldn’t have imagined before, and I wept when I came in the presence of the Western Wall. Then came time to dedicate life to love and those closest to me in Maui, a destination very dear to my heart. I modified my “Love” phase to be symbolic of paying homage to my roots and soaking up my favorite sceneries with my wonderful parents and sister. After all, I couldn’t expect to be swept off my feet by some guy while in Hawaii like Gilbert experiences in Bali, right??

So now, it’s been two months since I’ve arrived back home after my travels, and I am now in a relationship – with a guy that I connected with while I was in Hawaii. Although he himself wasn’t physically on the island, the universe has a funny way of working out, and I couldn’t be happier, not only with the direction life is going in, but also that I got to live out my own little “Eat, Pray, Love” that I had always dreamed of. Life is spontaneous, and these past months have been full of surprising changes and opportunities that I couldn’t be more grateful for. Sometimes things happen quickly and unexpectedly, but always remember to trust in the universe and let life flow! Open up your heart to the potential of what your heart and soul are seeking, enjoy the moment, and the universe will provide you with more than expected! We all are going through our own journeys, so you must enjoy your own for what it is! Don’t be afraid to share you stories, reach out to others, and always live life in the moment!

The Importance of Being an Explorer

March 02, 2018 by Alannah Paren in Inspiration

Growing up, my mom always imparted on me the wisdom of my great-grandmother: “Be a trier.” These three words have influenced my life heavily, as I guide my life with the perspective that some things I need to experience before I have the authority to gauge my stance. Whether it’s a new food, a new idea, or a new activity (especially one that pushes me out of my comfort zone), I keep in the back of my mind that I must give it a shot if I want to expand my knowledge, knowing that the worst that can happen is that I learn that whatever I tried isn’t something I want to partake in again in the future. This morning as I began brainstorming how to formulate my thoughts into an intelligible blog post, I made myself some tea (and I like the kind that has a little quote to ponder as you sip) and the quote of today’s tea bag was: “Experience will give you the power and confidence to be you.” And that’s when all my thoughts came together.

I absolutely love traveling, but for me the term “explorer” goes beyond the physical act of going on some exotic journey, to also include just the act of “exploring” other options, different perspectives, a bite of that interesting looking dish at the neighborhood potluck… you get the idea! From an early age I’d like to say that I have had an inherent curiosity and thirst for knowledge pushing me to seek out a plethora of new experiences, but I know that some people are more homebodies. Which brings me to my overall message that I hope to instill: even if you wouldn’t describe yourself as one who wishes to go outside of your normal routine, the act of exploring in any sense of the word is so enriching and benefitting. With this freshness that comes with the start of March, I encourage everyone to make this month one of healthy challenge, setting at least one new goal to attempt that pushes the boundaries of the “normalness’ of the everyday.

When we spread our wings and immerse ourselves in something new, we add one more notch to the repertoire of things that make us who we are, since after all, we are all unique creations that have been shaped and molded by our individual life experiences. The more books we’ve read, people we’ve met, places we’ve gone, foods that we’ve tried, etc., the greater awareness we have for the world around us, and thus the more accurately we can place ourselves in the greater context of this diverse world. In my own life, certain experiences have illuminated feelings that were deep inside me all along, but that I could only place a finger on once I was exposed to the converse feeling through an exploration or heard someone else put words to my ambiguous emotions.

I think that when we as human beings take an active approach towards life, meaning that we maintain an open-minded perspective and allow ourselves to continually absorb new knowledge, we work to cultivate a society that is more culturally aware and empathetic. By encouraging our own selves to take advantage of all the wonderful possibilities in life, we are opening ourselves up to being pleasantly surprised and learning something about our own beings, or we can at least take pride in entering and surviving something that wasn’t necessarily our “cup of tea,” but that we now have an educated background in and thus can have justified attitudes towards. In working on making our inverse one of more unity, we need to all have a small taste of what other people’s “normal” is, so we should all view ourselves as “world detectives,” doing our best to collect all that we can so that we can make supported claims, have a better understanding of who we are, and add to the evidence that there is something that connects us all as human beings.

So go out and try a new cuisine, read a new genre of books, watch a documentary on an unfamiliar topic… or maybe even book a flight to that place you’ve always wanted to go to! We never cease to be students of life, so let’s all make the most of our priceless education!