Sitting amidst 380 people in a gigantic camp theatre nestled in Rockhill, New York, I fought back the endless stream of tears that were burning the back of my throat. (All I had to do was say go.) Up there on the stage was one of my favourite humans, Jonathan Fields, reading a chapter from his new book, How to Live a Good Life. I felt like he was talking directly to me. At that moment, the room ceased to exist. Here was his invitation to me:
What would you do if you knew no one was watching?
Whoa! My mind couldn’t handle it. It felt so…overwhelming. I mean, really? What would I do? A better question would be what wouldn’t I do? I reminded myself to take a breath before I did a deep dive into this space of endless possibilities.
Camp Good Life Project (GLP) this year was a fusion of excitement, connection, fear, insecurities, fun, and love. There was so much soulful, pure love. It’s available to all of us, but in the real world, we rarely open ourselves up to it. Honestly, I was blown away by the stark contrast between my two worlds this past week. Stepping out of Camp GLP and into the real world made me realise that the love bubble I’d been in the past few days was about to burst. The little girl in me wants to know: why can’t we just hug a stranger?
I had to take a step back and ask myself an important question—What am I bringing to the table?
I posted a video on Facebook about my camp experience, and as simple as it sounds, I was terrified to share it with the world. I’d literally just walked through the door after a five day trip to New York, and I was exhausted. My hair was a mess and my makeup was nearly nonexistent, but I knew I had to get my message out while my vibes were still high from camp. I had a team of cheerleaders who had my back, and for that, I was endlessly grateful.
The trick was to not think too hard about it. If I did, the video never would’ve seen the light of day, and my message wouldn’t have been put out into the world. Needless to say, I was absolutely blown away by the outpour of Facebook love for my video. In that moment, I was reminded of the power of vulnerability and how—if given the chance—people want to embrace all of you. There truly is so much goodness in the world, and thinking about it gives me goosebumps. It’s up to us to create a ripple effect of love and kindness and carry that magnetic energy forward. That’s what I wanted from my video.
There were three takeaways from camp for me this year, and I won’t take your time here with the details, but instead will point you in the direction of my vlog. (For the record, I L-O-V-E saying vlog, and could totally get used to this.) My takeaways were all about fear, connection, and play.
- Feel the fear, and do it anyway. I don’t know of a better place to practice that muscle than at Camp GLP. The courageous acts I witnessed were insanely inspirational.
- Connection with the right humans is essential to happiness, vitality, and personal growth. This quote from Thomas Moore perfectly captures my camp experience: We need people in our lives with whom we can be as open as possible. To have real conversations with people may seem a simple, obvious suggestion but it involves courage and risk.
- We all need more play in our lives to awaken the vibrant energy that’s living within us. The dance party at Camp CLP rocked my world, to say the least.
Now back to Jonathan’s invitation. Who would I be, and what would I do, if I knew no one was watching?
I’d combine my love for dancing with my desire to be a public speaker. It would be incredible to get on that stage after creating a fusion of music and words to spread my message, and I can’t wait for my tribe to hold me accountable.
Your turn.
Who would you be or what would you do if you knew no one was watching?
Let’s kick it up a notch and collectively raise the global vibration one human at a time. I’ve got your back.
