Just Enjoy It

The simplicity of finding happiness

I know that it isn’t always easy to find purpose or happiness in life, and sometimes it really feels like a grind. I consider myself a happy person these days (except Mondays and after hurricanes lol…), but I’ve been through years of my life where that was not the case. It has been a journey for me, being miserable, finding purpose, loosing purpose, and reconnecting to the joy of life in a more conscious way from within.

I do consider myself to be blessed that at an early age I found a purpose for my life and was able to have my work line up with that, which was working with and serving my spiritual teacher, John-Roger (J-R). I got to be by his side for 17 years, learning from him like a sponge.

John-Roger & Nat at an event

After he passed away, my life and work drastically changed. 

I moved into the full time job of running a jewelry business which I had co-founded, making bespoke fine jewelry and spending time in the worlds of material wealth and high fashion. This was the exact opposite of my previous life.

I struggled for a long time to find purpose in my new work. I felt depressed, frustrated and that life and work was just a grind. For many, my life would be “the dream,” but I was not impressed. I was living a comfortable life, but why wasn’t I happy? It was a period of grief and struggle for me trying to find my way in a new, foreign world where everything had changed.

I had learned and taught all of the tools I could ever need to find joy and enthusiasm for life. 

So I got busy using what I knew, and also learning new things. I’ve always been a bit obsessed with knowing the spiritual realities, knowing myself, finding out how this world works, and understanding other people. So I can be intense about things.

Through years of persistent application of the practical spiritual tools which had been imparted to me by J-R, I finally found greater purpose in my new life, and began to love and be grateful for all the learnings and blessings that my life provided me

One of the essential keys for me has been tracking. To this day, each morning I track whether I have done those things I have chosen to do. 

Currently, my list is: 

• Spiritual exercises: my inner meditation practice

• J-R meditation: that’s one of John-Roger’s guided meditations

• Dream recording

• Gratitude statement: I write what I’m grateful for

• Ideal scenes: currently I have 12 ideal scenes for various areas of my life that I read and/or send light to

• Forgiveness: saying forgiveness statements

• Send light: I have a whole list of what/who I’m sending light to

• Intentions, purposes, and page of affirmations: I say/read each morning

This is a list that has changed over time, with some things like spiritual exercises being on there always. At times, I’ll add other things like freeform writing. I’ve spoken at length about most of these tools and techniques on my podcast. 

I don’t necessarily do everything every day, but I do most things most days. Either way, I do my best to track on a tracking sheet what I have done or not done. Please realize that all these tools have taken decades to build into my daily life, but if you are starting I would suggest start with one thing and track that.

The beauty of tracking is that it helps with consistency, and it can take great persistence to break through so many of those things we have created which block us from the joy that is truly our heritage. 

In my life, through this focus towards the greater light and doing these and many other things, at some point, I found I was loving life again. As you maintain your positive focus, and do those activities that support that focus, gradually the inner environment changes and one day you find that you are just lighter.

I had once again discovered a greater purpose in life, an attitude in line with my higher awareness, and I was joyful, expanded and grateful. And as I lived in that awareness, the blessings rushed in even more. 

I actually started to enjoy the jewelry trade shows, working with our manufacturers and vendors, connecting with all sorts of interesting people, designing and selling the pieces, spending time with our great clients and store owners, and going to Paris for fashion week.

The jewelry business was actually supporting the things I loved in life (like surfing in French Polynesia), and I was so grateful for that. I started seeing the business as a source of blessings in my life, and approaching it from that perspective.

I know it may seem crazy to people who haven’t lived around riches, but you can live like that and be absolutely miserable and really not enjoying life. To be unhappy in the midst of plenty is very common. I’ve met very few rich people who are truly happy.

I was now “living the dream”, but even better, I was happy. I was happy in it but not because of it, and very soon I would also be happy living a very different dream (without all of that). 

I didn’t find fulfillment because of the materiality. It was because I was already fulfilled inside that I was able to truly enjoy my outer life; because I wasn’t attached to the materiality, I was able to actually enjoy it.

Just about that time, my life took another major turn and almost everything changed again. I left that jewelry business, a long-term relationship, and moved back into the work of assisting others, which is where my heart really is. 

The lockdowns hit immediately following those major personal changes, which led to more changes such as moving to the countryside of Puerto Rico where I am living a different dream life: including surfing world class waves in crystal clear warm water almost daily, all while getting to work with my coaching clients around the world (if you’re interested in that kind of support, write me).

Life here can be challenging at times, and I’m sure I’ll get to those stories too (I’m editing this while still on generator power 12 days after a hurricane), but I am still happy. I work at it every day though, because even in paradise you can be miserable. The outer world around us has a lot less to do with living a joyful life than most people believe. I use many tools and techniques to live a good life inside of me, but the first step is just focusing on enjoying and loving your life. It can be that simple.

So if you find yourself not happy in your life, whether you lost your purpose or haven’t found it yet, start by letting go of the pressure to find your purpose or to be happy. Its okay if you aren’t happy right now. It’s okay if you don’t feel you have purpose. 

Just begin by embracing life as it is, and start shifting your perspective/attitude towards loving what you’re doing, living up to the challenge of doing it with mastership which is to do it with the greatest care, especially if you feel stuck in it (jobs, relationships, etc). 

This week, take every opportunity to enjoy your life while handling the responsibilities that are yours to do. Look for how you can enjoy what you are doing. 

Just focus on enjoying/loving your life as it is, without needing to change anything.  Just do that, and your experience of life will be better. 

And you can let me know how that works for you.