Where Do You Place Your Intention?

26 years ago, I was pregnant with my son and my first child. A friend who would later become a godparent to our daughter, who would arrive two years later, announced that she had melanoma.

This frightened her, and what would later be the beginning of a series of challenges she would face, she somehow continued to be strong with a clear intention of her desire. She still had plans.

Our friend, Jean, stood up at our wedding, and was quoted in the wedding program as someone who could make me laugh and this is why we loved her.

She had a fierce and contagious laughter …

She still does.

She told us to get involved with what was then called Cancer Wellness House, and is now called Survivor Wellness House, which we did and we continue to support. 

Yesterday we climbed up Snowbird summit, for the umpteenth time to celebrate Jean and to announce that we too are survivors, and we support all those who came before us, and will come after us, and who come with us today. 

Whether you took the tram up or stood on a trail serving water to those who came by or hiked the 3 1/2 mile, 2500 foot elevation gain hike, we stood on top of that 12,000 foot mountain where no trees can grow, and where snow still awaits to be melted and felt the sun upon our shoulders and looked at the blue sky above in the city down below. We knew then as we know now that sometimes it just takes the action behind the intention to live out our desires

“Setting daily intentions is a good way to bring your desires and goals into reality. Intention-setting helps us focus on how we want to feel rather than how things look at the moment creating a powerful foundation for manifesting what we desire in our lives.”

-James Hardy, Mosaic Yoga instructor 

Sometimes taking a pilgrimage can help rechoose our desires and clarify our intentions. Recently, Two friends of mine completed their pilgrimage along the shoreline of Portugal, and into the country of Spain and arrived at the Cathedral of Santiago de Compostela.

A 170 mile trek taken with their best friend.

This, of course, reminded me of our own trek, taken a year ago, along another Camino route, that was  equally as important and impressionable.

The journey connected us to newly made friends from South Korea and from England. There were times our accents were difficult to understand, but we always came across songs that we could sing together as one. Songs were our common language. 

We called it the Camino sing-along.

Meeting friends from South Carolina and Mexico-it just didn’t matter where you were from, we only knew that this is where we ended up, being in the same place at the same time. 

Our intention was to finish, being open to what the journey would reveal. 

The power of song has always been important to me. Over 30 years ago, I sang a song both verbally and in sign language for my mom’s kindergarten class. It was a John Denver song called “Sunshine on my Shoulders.” I like the simplicity of the words, and yet the message was significant to even the five-year-olds I was teaching.

What I didn’t know was that I was acknowledging a tipping point in my life where I was making a decision about my career. I was at the end of my 20s deciding to officially sign that teacher contract I had been avoiding for 10 years. So in my 29th and three-quarter year after completing the filming of that sign language song lesson with those sweet kindergartners, I signed my first teacher contract.

I am now transitioning out of  my formal career, ending my 34th year of teaching. In just under one month from now I begin the “first of the lasts” (“ my last first day of school” “my last Halloween Classroom costume” “ my last parent teacher conference” - that last one may not be missed as much!) I am finding my new song. 

There were years that went LONG and years that flew by, but I managed to keep photographs of that kindergarten class in my office to remind me of where my heart’s intention was and continues to be.

Inclosing, there is a song by Cat Stevens that holds a significant memory for me.

There was a time on the Camino where Michael and I walked with a 30 minute gap between us. There was a man who only spoke Spanish, walking alone, and at an even slower pace than either of us. He was singing this same Cat Stevens song. As Michael walked beside him and became in sync with his steps, Michael sang the lyrics of that song with him.

30 minutes later, for he must’ve had this song on repeat, or just simply playing the album over and over again, I walked beside this same pilgrim, who spoke no English, yet who sang the Cat Steven song perfectly, and lyrically. As our steps became in sync with one another, we sang together.

It wasn’t until Michael and I met up an hour later that we shared this story with one another,  how we both had this synchronistic encounter with this gentleman in the same way. 

“Buen Camino!” was the only thing we really said outside of the lyrics. We simply celebrated our time together for a brief moment, and that was enough.

In this crazy world, I hope you set your intention to follow your heart’s path, wherever that takes you, and that you sing your song.