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Just Lie Down

September 1, 2020 By Laura Davis 3 Comments · · · · · · Read & Respond

“Stress is basically a disconnection from the earth, a forgetting of the breath. Stress is an ignorant state. It believes that everything is an emergency. Nothing is that important. Just lie down.”

–Natalie Goldberg

Tell me about a specific time (or period of your life) when you let go of everything you thought you had to do.

Filed Under: Prompts

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Comments

  1. Ian Patrick says

    September 3, 2020 at 11:51 am

    One time, I left art school.

    Reply
    • BeverlyBoyd says

      September 4, 2020 at 6:29 pm

      Hi Ian. that seems like a really big step you took. Can you tell us more?

      Reply
  2. Beverly boyd says

    September 4, 2020 at 7:08 pm

    From the time I was a freshman in high school I had an off and on again romance. Neither of our mothers approved of our being together, although they liked each of us well enough. He was an alter boy in the Catholic church: his mother was a devote cradle Catholic. My mother was a Methodist minister’s wife. Mixed marriages were very much frowned upon in the fifties and the pairing of the alter boy and the minister’s daughter was the talk of our small town.,

    For two years we were in the same school and then my father was transferred to another church After we graduated from high school he went to the Naval Academy and I went to Syracuse University. For eight years we “went together” long distance and broke up often, mainly because of the pressure we got from our mothers. We told each other we didn’t love each other anymore, but we did. Our separations were followed by tearful and passionate making up. I needed to know that, if I married him, it was because I truly loved him and wasn’t rebelling against my mother.

    Finally I decided that we needed to experience each other in a more normal lifestyle. In the last semester of my senior year at SU, I got a job and an apartment in Annapolis.

    My potential Father -in -law was cautiously supportive and made me promise him that I wouldn’t go this far in college and not finish. I took that promise seriously. It wasn’t easy getting the credits I needed to graduate from UCLA. That promise gave me what I needed to get through those last classes.

    After he graduated we married. He was stationed on a destroyer in Long Beach and we lived with my aunt and uncle in West Los Angeles so I could finish my degree at UCLA. That one semester missed at Syracuse became two and a summer session. By the end of summer I was pregnant with the first of our seven children, but I finished.

    It was scary making such a big decision. I missed graduating with my Syracuse friends, In fact I didn’t attend my graduation at UCLA, But I firmly believe it was important for me to make the decision and act on it.

    Reply

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Like this Virtual Vacation?

You can also read about Laura’s travels to:

Peru 2017

In which Laura and Karyn and 18 writers explore Machu Picchu and the Sacred Valley of Peru.

Serbia 2017

In which Laura leads a workshop at the Incest Trauma Center.

Greece 2016

In which Laura explores the wonders of Crete and Santorini with a wide-eyed group of Write, Travel, Transform adventurers.

Vietnam 2015/16

In which Laura, who grew up during the Vietnam War, goes to Southeast Asia and finds out what Vietnam, Laos and Cambodia are really like today.

Commonweal 2015

A journey toward healing loss and grief in a magnificent Northern California setting.

Scotland 2015

In which Laura returns to Scotland with a new group for another jaunt through the wonders of the Scottish Highlands.

Scotland 2013

In which Laura attends the Edinburgh theatre festival and leads 14 writers to a magical retreat in the highlands of Northern Scotland.

Bali 2013

In which Laura visits Australia, and spends three weeks diving, exploring, and teaching in three regions of Bali.

Florida 2014

A journey into old age in America in which Laura brings her 86-year-old mother to Florida so she can see her last surviving sister one final time.

Mexico 2014

In which Laura attends the San Miguel Writer’s Conference and explores the artistic towns around Patzcuaro.

About Laura Davis

In the course of my career as a communicator, I have also worked as a columnist, talk show host, radio reporter, radio producer, blogger, editor, and speaker. Words have always been at the core of my work and my self-expression. Read More . . .

Photo taken by Jason Ritchey

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Retreating with Laura: Julie Sheehan

Julie Sheehan

For many years I put off my dream of writing and traveling. I told myself the kids were too little, my husband could never survive without me, that I couldn't possibly be so selfish. I couldn't imagine realistically stepping out of all of my responsibilities and roles. Then I started attending Laura’s summer retreat at Commonweal in northern California and that became an annual gift to myself for the next three years.

When the opportunity to travel with Laura internationally came up, my Land of Later mentality said I could never pull it off. But when my friend got cancer at age 39, I decided to stop taking life and it's endless opportunities to grow, live, nurture and explore myself for granted.

My children were 6 and 9 when I began allowing myself the luxurious pleasure of taking 10 days to two weeks each year to travel abroad with Laura, to spend time with like minded, soul searching people who share a passion for living and writing, to have all my meals prepared for me, to have the space and freedom to stretch out of my cage and check in with who I am, what I want, and how best to get there.

Laura is a skilled and nurturing teacher who encourages her students to take risks, to grow as human beings, and to be vulnerable. She has provided me with a forum where I can gain all my CEUs and learn techniques on how to become a more engaging writer, all while completing yearly emotional rehab.

I return home from each of Laura’s trip a little wiser, a little more open, and a lot more compassionate. I greet my family, friends and daily life with sparkly, clean energy and a renewed patience, brought about by way of re-writing old stories that I needed to let go of. I come home ready to move forward in my life.

A retreat with Laura Davis is one of the best gifts I ever received and gave myself. It took many years to realize that I was worth the time and financial investment, but now there is no looking back.

Julie Sheehan, Livermore California

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