Happy HollyDays: 002 - Learnings from Two Holy Years in Bali
Happy HollyDays: 002 - Learnings from Two Holy Years in Bali
What does it even mean to be happy and holy?
Well...
"Happy Holidays!" they say.
"Happy Holy Days!" I say.
Can every day be a Holy Day?
No matter what you're going through, no matter what is swirling in your life, no matter what day it is. Can you treat every day like it is Holy?
What does it even mean to be "Holy"?
Sacred. Devoted.
Meeting the God inside of you, inside us all.
Seeing the beauty in all things... Unconditional Beauty.
When shit hits the fan...
When they leave...
When the bank account is dwindling...
When the unthinkable happens...
When it is taken without consent...
When the rejection lands...
How do we show up in the shit?
How do we cope?
How are we communicating? Or not communicating?
How do we speak our desires without attachment for any outcome?
How are we setting boundaries on people we love?
How do we say hello & goodbye, yes & no, thank you & fuck you
Can we stand strong?
Can we ask for help?
Can we dance in the discomfort?
Can we see all things as Holy?
Your Wholeness is your Holiness.
May you remember the Divine Holiness that is inherently within you, within us all.
You are the gift.
And from this place, it is with great pleasure that I share the ten things I learned from being in Bali for two Holy years.
Oh Mama Bali, I hold so much gratitude for being held in this beautiful island so tenderly during this time. I learned so much on this fertile land.
As I reflect on what I’ve learned exactly, it goes so deep, I c̶o̶u̶l̶d̶ will write a book - and the biggest lesson of all, is what it means to be Holy.
Its funny, these words we have to use as tools to communicate what we are wanting to express.
Yes, my name is Holly and here in Bali they say it like hoh- lee like “Holy”.
I don’t correct them for simplicity’s sake and also a (big) part of me quite likes it.
“Yes I am Holy” I say.
“Good name” they say, “like Holy Water”.
I smile back and say “Suksema” which means thank you in Balinese.
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I remember landing in the airport DPS, I had just arrived from Thailand after buying my plane ticket at Shambala festival - following my intuition after sharing The DREAM Workshop there.
“Bali feels like a place where I can make my dreams come true, I go there” I thought.
The moment I landed and stepped foot in the airport, I felt my entire nervous system relax.
I said to myself “Oh wow, it feels really good here, I have a feeling I’ll be here for a while.”
Little did I know, a world pandemic was fast approaching and lo and behold, my intuition was spot on! As I was coming to a crossroads in deciding whether to stay or leave at the beginning of the pandemic, I trusted my intuition and chose to stay in Bali for the past two years.
As Bali has changed, evolved, paused, shifted over this time, I’ve compiled a list of the great teachings that I have received from being rooted and grounded in this land for this time.
What I learned from Two Holy years in Bali …
You can trust yourself, you can trust your body. Lean in and listen. When you reach a moment in life, and it feels uncomfortable or scary, come back to your body, close your eyes, take a deep breath, pause in the stillness, and say out loud “I trust myself.” - then make a choice from that place. This is how bold, courageous, and aligned choices are made, this is how those distinct Turning Points in life come to be.
Devotion. Consistency brings change. The Balinese people pray twice a day every day - ceremonies, offerings, giving gratitude is ingrained in their daily life.You can feel it in the air. A literal physical imprint is seen and felt every single day. It has shown me that I can be dedicated in my own daily practice. i.e. My morning practice has never been so consistent, deep, fun, and expansive. 88 days of meditation straight, without skipping a day, dancing every day, chanting, sunbathing, morning pages in my journal, drinking lemon water, chinese herbs, propolis, medicinal mushrooms and shilajit first thing (I finally gave up coffee after 10 years of drinking it every day!), intermittent fasting, and a good sweat however I may get it.
3. The feminine way is perfectly okay, in fact, it is yummier to operate from the feminine rather than the masculine. What does this mean? Soft is good, it doesn’t need to be so hard. Surrendering on a new level, there is no “doing” surrender, it is simply an opening, an allowing, a trusting that you will be held and taken care of as you are living in your truest alignment.
4. Ask for what you want. And be aware of what you ask for. You get what you want.
5. Creative expression is life force energy. To be truly seen and heard in your truest truth is one of the greatest gifts you can experience. The first part is even understanding what your truest truth underneath all of the pre-conditioned ways of being, and then from that place, showing up in Unconditional Love for the self which is internal rather than external validation from others.
6. You can heal yourself through dance. The energy that is generated through pure flow state touches the body, mind, spirit, and soul permeating your entire being. I have truly experienced embodied emotional cathartic releases on the dance floor of ecstatic dance that have played a huge part of my healing. At ecstatic dance, you are given permission to be your fullest most expressed self without any judgment. I’ve traveled all across the world and visited many different cities’ ecstatic dances, and while each place has a different vibe and energy, I can say that Bali’s ecstatic dance is the most healing dance floor in the world.
7. Community is created through leaning into the discomfort and triggers of one another with a loving and open heart. Conscious communication is a super useful tool that anyone will receive tremendous benefits from practicing. People are most likely willing to do the work if you invite them, without expectations of course.
8. You can only meet someone as deep as you’ve gone yourself. The road to self discovery is a non-linear and bumpy ride through uncovering childhood traumas (we all have them), creating the spaciousness to truly dive into yourself and what you may have been suppressing.
9. Nature holds the keys, the answers to life. It is true medicine. Solace. Mama Gaia. The grand mother herself. If you tune in closely to Her, it all makes sense. The way the trees support us, the sun energizes us, the water fuels us, and the air moves us. There are no coincidences.
10. As I’ve experienced and worked with some of the best healers, medicine workers, coaches, teachers, which have been transformative and all. AND at the very end of the day… you know you are your own best healer, you have everything within you, and you are doin’ it, it is happening, you’ve got it.
And with that, it is with great delight and the utmost ecstatic bliss that I am sharing my most special offering - an intimate, in-person 1on1 container in my home in Bali - The Holy Bali Experience. You can receive it as a soft, warm welcoming for your arrival in Bali - from my heart & home to yours.
After living on this magical island for over two years, I have scouted the most special experiences and offerings and would love to invite you to come spend some days with me in my villa located in central Ubud and experience the magic that is Bali.
Bali’s doors are open and so is my heart.
If you feel the call… I invite you to trust it, lean in, and reach out to me to begin the application process. Due to the intimate nature of the experience, availability is very limited and filling out the application is required.
Also, if coming to Bali is not aligned at this moment and you wish to work with me in another way, I also offer an online group experience and 1on1 mentorship in June.
If you have any questions, please simply reply to this email.
Apply HERE.
Happy Holy Day, today, tomorrow, and every day!
Loving you,
Holly