Aligning and LIVING My Path

I may not have gone where I intended to go, but I think I have ended up where I needed to be.”

– Douglas Adams

The past week (12-18 July) felt like another pivotal point on my path. Almost two years have passed since I launched Tacos and Tiaras blog and social media, and like it is with most transformations, you may not notice while it’s happening. You arrive at a day when you look back and SEE HOW FAR YOU’VE COME instead of how far you still have to go. And honestly, some days I’m still not 100% certain of all the details, but I feel clear on my mission and purpose – LUCEAT LUX VESTRA.

Visually I noticed when I opened my Instagram – all of most recent posts visible on the page looked very uniform AND were in my newest format for creating videos. So I scrolled back to the first posts when I launched in 2019 (see left grid in the pic for this blog post), and what stands out is that the purpose of my Instagram isn’t clear.

I was actually surprised to see my MAKALA dolphin soprano ukulele because at that point, I shared a pic because I obtained a PURPLE ukulele! Posting videos of me playing didn’t cross my mind because I already had a ukulele for a few years and was no further past the beginner stage as I was in 2015. Yeah, my mindset was that no one would want to watch me riding the struggle bus learning to play!

My existing TikTok account sat unused until 19 September 2020. My first TikTok was a song for Talk Like a Pirate Day! I began using it as Tacos and Tiaras instead of personal account, and this opened the door for me to learn another platform as well as making videos instead of simply sharing pictures. If you look at right grid in the pic for this blog post, it’s similar to the Instagram account in that the newest posts look more uniform because I learned to use covers to give the post a title and facilitate the user experience in my catalog. The content also seems more focused whereas my earliest posts seem unclear about my niche. Being all-zen-and-shit and letting my light shine was “my thing” but I was still finding my way to what kind of content would accomplish “my thing”.

I really can’t remember if I have shared this confession in the past two years of this blog, so let me say it now: I used to get stuck in my head. A LOT. What I mean is that I wasn’t just spending a lot of time in thought, but I was thinking instead of living.

I fell victim to my own mind in that I would think things through, believing that I knew that if I completed actions X, Y, and Z, they would lead to a specific outcome. That may not sound like a bad thing if it meant avoiding mistakes, but either way, I wasn’t living if I stayed in my head, and I’ve learned to not only accept but also at times EMBRACE my mistakes.

So here I am… living… making strides… making mistakes… making impressions… making others smile or laugh… making a difference… making memories…

I feel so much gratitude for recognizing the alignment in my life and for knowing that I am fulfilling my mission and purpose with humility and gratitude. Whenever I write my gratitude whether it’s in my journal or as part of setting intentions, I express how grateful I feel that the Universe continues to deliver the experiences, opportunities, tools, resources, and people that are aligned with me, my mission, and my purpose. I feel grateful to the people who whether or not they know it had a role in where I am today, shaping the future – not just my future but also any life I touch by fulfilling my mission and purpose.

Two years ago I started with what I thought I was being called to do – write this blog. I’ve had times of writer’s block when I was chasing a prompt; I’ve had times of daily posts when I was allowing the flow! Somehow in using Instagram and TikTok to be a light (when I moved from posting ukulele videos on Facebook for just my friends to posting on TnT social media), the kind feedback from two of my favorite friends helped me to realize that my laughing and smiling set my videos apart from other music videos. Initially I had put YouTube on the back burner until a few months ago, and it has opened many more doors.

On Sunday, 18 July, I was in the Artisan Spotlight on my YouTube brother’s channel. Roland and I talked beyond the topic of music, and I performed a few songs; but I really enjoyed SPEAKING for a change instead of writing or singing! And I feel so grateful to Roland for inviting me to be his guest because it was an opportunity for me to grow and reach more folks with whom I might not have crossed paths. Whether our conversation inspired others or maybe my singing, smiling, or laughing just added a bright spot to someone’s night, being in the spotlight was another piece of fulfilling my mission.

ANWYAY… when I look at my social media accounts and this blog, I see how they’re a bit disconnected. Over the course of two years, each account went through changes as shown in the pic for this post. It’s time to bring everything together… My YouTube channel has ukuLEENIE on the banner along with tacosandtiaras.com in the image, but I’ve never explained on YouTube what’s the deal with Tacos and Tiaras Tuesday Tunes and why I’m wearing a tiara and an F bomb shirt.

I hope you’re as excited as I am to see what’s about to arrive…and for which I already feel grateful.

Luceat lux vestra.