Back in the U.S.

Massive Sequoia in my sister's neighborhood!

My precious 7 year old niece. Time flies!

Castle Rock State Park, California

I've really been behind with updating. I really miss it though! Life has been a balancing act over the past few months and will continue at this pace with a few breaks in between. I can't complain though. I feel extremely lucky to have had a number of opportunities come my way, and well, consistency and hard work have a way of steadily paying off unexpectedly when you simply immerse yourself in the work. 

In October I traveled back to the U.S. for the first time in almost 5 years! Can you imagine?! I didn't think it would take that long to get back when I first moved to Sweden but that's how it worked out. In a way I felt like a foreigner in my own country of origin, hahaha. Not in a bad way. But, I have to say, there is something about the European lifestyle that jives with me. At least for now. I can't predict the future but I'm content on living in Sweden. It works, especially if I get the chance to go away someplace warm and sunny during the winter months. 

So I headed to the west coast first to visit my sister and her family, including my adorable niece above in the Portland, Oregon area, then afterward, to San Jose, California to teach a weekend workshop there. I'm thinking maybe it was a good thing I visited the west coast for my mode of re-entry. There is open minded thinking everywhere but there seems to be more of it in place out there. I guess my one and only complaint is America's obsession with the automobile. The bigger the better it seems, and I feel myself being turned off by it, especially after living in a country where public transportation is not only done well, but extremely well. 

However, through it all I had a lovely trip. There are some things I just don't have in Sweden. Like family and Whole Foods. In case you didn't know I'm obsessed with Whole Foods. Everything also seems so much cheaper in the U.S. versus Sweden. So for consumption, yeah, America's got Sweden beat. The 25% Vat can really add up but somehow I don't feel like I'm getting too burned. There's a quality of life and a balance of life in Sweden that I can really appreciate. The contrast of travel and living in another country has given opportunity to open my eyes to many facets of life. For that I am grateful. I'm still no doubt American but the beauty of practicing yoga, traveling and living abroad you realize that there is a thread that connects us all no matter what labels or nationalities we identify with. If we could open our minds to that our world word be a different place.