My Joy List
May 13th - 19th: human design, a workshop with Dutchies on a farm, & Tyler the Creator’s energy
You’re reading a newsletter from Syd, an NYC-born gal who quit her “golden handcuffs” job and moved to Amsterdam to follow her heart’s calls for a path less traveled. Here, I share the challenges and wins of my own journey from people pleasing & perfectionism to authenticity, balance, joy, & freedom. Beyond this page, I coach fellow high achievers along their own journey. You may find comfort, empowerment, inspiration, and/or community. Welcome 🫶🏻
Hi my sunshiney ones!
I listened to a podcast episode last week about Human Design. I’ve heard the term thrown around for a while and assumed it was just another one of those “personality tests” I did at work. But I finally actually learned a bit and it’s more like personality test-meets-astrology! I recommend the episode if you’re interested in learning more too. (Human Design aside, I’m newly enjoying this podcast on the whole. I love the host’s energy.)
I then downloaded Jenna Zoe’s app, Align, to find out my type. I’m a “manifesting generator.” The description really blew me away in how right it felt.
And it got me thinking: astrological readings, personality tests, human design… these things don’t teach us about ourselves as much as they validate what we already know about ourselves, especially when it comes to things we may be too sheepish to claim for fear of coming off as arrogant or overly self-confident. Gosh forbid we think something positive about ourselves!
That feeling of “oh my gosh, yes, that’s exactly me!” Or “no, that’s really not me” when you read something about yourself (you know that feeling?) is evidence of just how much you know about yourself and it feels so good to have something outside of us confirm that it’s true.
But what if you trusted your gut feeling so much that it was enough to know something about you is true or not?
That ability is a muscle you can build. And it is essential if you want to make soul-aligned decisions instead of scanning the world around you to decide for you.
I’m for sure not immune to external influence (is anybody?), but I make a whole lot more gut-led decisions now than I used to and they’re the ones that make my life glow. And I think that’s what we can all strive toward. Not 100% gut-led decisions, but just more of them, more naturally, more often.
Other thoughts/ideas I’m mulling:
The universe keeps asking me to read The Four Agreements. I first saw the book about eight months ago on the toilet at A’s brother’s house. I can’t remember exactly how, but I was reminded of it a few other times since—perhaps in my Kindle and Goodreads recommendation algorithms. Then, I saw it on (and stole it from) my parents’ closet a couple weeks ago. Two days ago, a girl sitting right across from me in the park had her nose buried in it. OK UNIVERSE! Message received! I started the book :) Will let ya know what I think. If you’re a fan, please message me!
The next episode of The Path Less Traveled…
… comes out this Friday! If you missed episode 1, you can find it on Spotify and Apple.
& with that, let’s get into the list! Happy joy spotting :) <3
Joy spotting: the practice of noticing little moments of joy surrounding us all the time (more)
the group of painters scattered on the field by the pond in Vondelpark
Rub’s freshly groomed fluffy ears
Ruby’s curiosity seeing a baby crawl for the first time
Ruby’s excitement to say hello to said baby
The moment Ruby licked said baby’s face
The joy in the baby’s face
Sitting on a picnic blanket while rubs roams in the field by the pond
The joyful reaction from the group of kids next to us when rubs walked over to their picnic setup and said hello
The way the peonies continue to grow and thrive
Cooking dinner for me and A
The way my stuffed portobello mushrooms came out on the plate
The boy holding sunflowers in the bakfiets with the setting sun making them glow while a mother-like figure steered him around the roundabout
The creative expression and passion oozing out of Tyler the Creator during his show
When Tyler took his shoes off and performed in just his socks
The way Ruby just laid down and snuggled in our bed right after waking up
The bush of yellow flowers that I still don’t know the name of
The purple and orange flower bed at the tree on my walk, talking with Katie
Immersing myself in a group of 6 Dutch women for the trust your gut workshop at The Brothel’s farm
Arnold putting a bowl of red sauce pasta in front of me immediately after I arrived at the farm
Sitting around the table with 4 of the Dutch women connecting over reflections on our workshop experience
When one of the women told me she’d like to go to a coffee shop with me
Arriving home to a messy kitchen full of A’s cooking
A’s homemade sushi, miso soup, and carrot-ginger dressed salad
A long, lazy Saturday morning on the couch with A
Seeing A snuggled up under a blanket with a book
Watching rubs run around freely with Bowie and Kiara before training class started
Seeing the dumpling woman back at the market
Seeing and talking with Shanti at the market
The delightful, friendly, welcoming vibe of A’s squash team at the barbecue
My plate full of warm made’s warung
The hot water of the shower after several hours feeling chilled outside
Playing frisbee with A on the beach
Looking out at the ocean and at A with rubs sitting in my lap on the beach at Bries
A long bike ride to Fuku Ramen under the beautiful Sunday afternoon sun
The rich, spicy broth in my ramen at Fuku Ramen
Spotting The Brothel products at Biolicious
The way Rubs seemed to love watching the Alcaraz-Sinner tennis match
Watching the sopranos on the couch with A and Rubs
Waking up to photos of Als graduating
The orangey pink flowers on my way to the gym
The fragrant smell of said flowers
The post-gym high vibes walk home
Caroline remembering me from the last time I cooked at De Kloof
Hearing Lisa talk about how she similarly moved to Amsterdam expecting to only be here for a year and knew quickly it’d be much longer
Rubs running into the bathroom and dancing around my feet with excitement after waking up from her nap
The plush lady bug sitting in the window of the van outside our building
Ruby peed in the house while I put this together and now I’m feeling like >____<. Good moment to come back to the joys.
Sending you a big hug for the week ahead <3
Love,
Syd