Me
I am on a mid-life grace, a self-imposed break, to find my way back to the bliss I had, but lost. I was a burned out vice president of a globe trotting meeting, convention and association management company; before that the co-founder of an organic lifestyle business on an urban farm gleefully curating products while teaching gardening, aromatherapy, and seasonal cooking; before that I wanted to learn how to grow a tomato in the desert, became a master gardener, taught teachers how to tend gardens and organized the first school gardening conference in the SW; before that I became a mom of two boys – happiness exploded; before that I was living the life as a yuppie slaying day and night in advertising and marketing at an upstart company growing up and with America West Airlines; before that I graduated from Arizona State University and tied the knot while in college, not because I had to, because I was crazy, stupid in love – and still there 35 years later; before that I was a municipal court clerk where I learned no two humans are alike, all is not what is seems and listening is a virtue; before that I was a 15 year old girl being transplanted to Arizona from Connecticut – tacos, a blinding sun, prickly pears and brown hues was the new, but all I wanted was to go back to my green, gray, cold New England home; before that my heart was broken by my parents sudden and final divorce; before that I was a 10 year old girl living in a house surrounded by heady lilacs, soft pussy willows and perfumed roses growing under my bedroom window; before that I was a five year old girl holding my hand filled with seeds asking my dad to plant me a garden; before that I was a two year girl climbing the wood stairs of her soon to be new house wondering how pretty it would look with all the furniture; before that I was born to a Sicilian singing mother and French Canadian chemist father – welcomed into the world with all the possibilities and promise of what was to come.
I’ve been a macramé maker, cinnamon roll baker, risk taker; seed planter, flower enchanter, a shop keeper, compost heaper, faith leaper, party planner, gift wrapper, divine decorator, wrist whisking, hug giving mama. I’m a goal digger, desert dweller, dream maker, mantra saying, salsa making, boho blastin, mala holding, life gracer. I am bold, beautiful and blissful.
The truth is I’m a serial lover of trying new things, looking forward not back, reaching for the impossible and making it happen.
Business Story
Stepping away from my crazy, stressful life was not a sudden decision. I dreamed it, planned it and made it happen. Then jumped into living in grace to just BE, not to act upon or plan anything for a year. Everyone thought I’d be bored in 3 months – nope! It took me a good 7 months just to let all the jaw clenching, shoulder scrunching, nervous energy to leave my body.
I let things unfold and followed what gave me bliss. Waking without an alarm clock, long brisk walks with our dog, stopping to breathe in fresh air and feel the sun shine on my face (office dwellers with no windows will understand), gained true balance and energy through kundalini yoga, found peace in meditation, got my hands back in the dirt, indulged my inner foodie cooking and eating the best local, fresh foods, fed my eternal wanderlust or bust desires traveling to places near and far, and poured my love into the people who meant the most to me.
So what is the next chapter to this story? I am creating an online blog and lifestyle business called Lauren Brooks Life (my middle name and husband’s first name) where all things are bliss and beauty full.
To feel and express bliss is one of the few things in life that remind you that you are alive. So why do we not allow ourselves to feel it more often instead of reserving it for vacations, holidays or worse yet, try to achieve it vicariously through others via our cell phones and laptops. I’ve lived and watch everyone around me stressed out with work, family, and life. Those that are spinning too many plates with no time to let in some joy.
Lauren Brooks Life will be a place to land where you can take back your bliss … live with more in joy … take action and become the boss of your own bliss!
I’ll be curating posts, offering products and engaging real life experiences in the areas that I love the most: gardening, cooking, decorating, life events, travel, and wellness.
The focus initially will be on building content and an audience. The content will focus on ways big and small that bring bliss. Special features will include:
- “Dispatches From ….” – to bring people along a journey close to home or around the globe featuring a destinations beauty, people, culture and food.
- “Get in my Belly” – what I’m growing, eating and loving now.
- “Field Trips” to meet with people who are living their bliss from everyday people, shop owners, artists, cooks, gardeners, spiritual teachers – to the neighbor next door.
- “The Grace Tales” – posts on how to make a transition with grace to do anything that brings more meaning, happiness, and bliss to your life.
- “Glow On” – simple techniques to bring the glow back to your life from your work desk, your home, your holiday and life celebrations, your children, your relationships, your fashion, your décor and your wellness. Offerings and musings from me, my friends, readers, and people I meet along the way.
Then I’ll begin holding workshops (in person or on video) for people to begin engaging in ways to bring bliss into their lives. Our intimate workshops at my home (8-12 ppl) will be engaging and interactive – not like the traditional “talking head” formula. From the moment a person signs up they will be invited to engage through a private FB group, asked to add to a Spotify playlist being created for the class (I love to cook or create with music), so by the time they come to class they might already feel a bit relaxed and familiar with me and the other participants. The value adds to the classes will be videos sent after to repeat important techniques (not a full workshop video – just highlights), proceeds from each class will go to a charity voted upon by the participants, and I’ll be offering at least 1 slots from each class for free to someone who needs a boost (single parent, recent arriving refugee, financially unable, etc.).
Shopping will be the third initial component. Products that I find along my travels will be put up for sale on a limited quantity basis. Build the interest for the products when showcasing them on my travels, use them in the workshops, then offer an opportunity for people to buy these exclusive products.