Honouring the changing season with gratitude, release and acceptance of change

The leaves are changing here in New Zealand

I noticed the first leaf changing colour this week, on the tree outside the window in front of the kitchen sink.

There’s no denying while the days are still bright and hot here in Paekakariki, it’s cooler in the shade or in the breeze, and night falls faster.

Summer is but a whisper on the wind as autumn embraces us.

‘Tis a time to feel grateful for the plentifulness of summer – the endless hot, cloudless blue sky days spent at the beach or the river, the good times spent with family and friends, and the harvest gathered from the garden and orchards.

‘Tis also a time to strip away the dead wood – that which no longer serves us, whether it’s ideas, relationships, places or things.

Here at The Yoga Lunchbox, the end of the summer and beginning of autumn has brought both gratitude and letting go.

I’m grateful for the support and encouragement of the community over the last year.

There’s 650 Facebook fans, 600 subscribers and 8,500 people every month coming to the site. Traffic is on the up & up, and it feels like the site is really gaining momentum.

However, I’ve let go of the idea that I can financially support myself directly through the site because – despite my best efforts at introducing income streams like downloads, Super Subscribers and affiliate links – in our new world of unlimited information, people won’t pay for content that’s already ‘free’.

So downloads and Super Subscribers have both been laid to rest although I’m still running affiliate links to products I love, as this requires little energy.

In letting go of the need for the site to directly support me financially, I’ve opened up to the other ways in which the site is already supporting me – in providing a platform for my writing to reach the world and in connecting me to a community I love.

I’m really proud of what The Yoga Lunchbox has grown into, but I also feel like it needs more than just me to thrive, so I’ve also let go of total control of the site.

I’ve opened up the platform so other collaborators can voluntarily come on board and help me run the site. This also gives me more time to pursue my other passions, like teaching one-on-one, mentoring emerging writers and launching my own personal website.

Plus it means The Yoga Lunchbox now has the energy and expertise of three brand new sparkly people  – Alys Titchener, Jessica Powers and Rachel Chapman.

Alys and Jessica have all been writing for The Yoga Lunchbox for awhile, and they also have other skills they’re volunteering – like web design, website architecture and community relations. Rachel’s expertise is in marketing, and she’s also going to start writing for this site this month.

Just having four people to brainstorm with about The Yoga Lunchbox is a breath of fresh air, plus I get to play Editor-in-Chief and Chief Project Manager. I like that.

So you can expect some new and exiting changes and additions in the coming months.

Watch out for a user survey, new ways to navigate the website, new partnerships,  and new yoga resources like the brand new IYTA Event Widget in the sidebar that keeps you up-to-date with all the yoga events in the IYTA calendar.

This change in the way The Yoga Lunchbox functions also offers new opportunities for you – the community, because I’ve got more hands on deck to make more things happen.

I may have built the platform, but the website belongs to you.

It’s here for whatever you want it for.

So what do you want to see on the website? What ideas have you got? What concepts do you want to float?

Whatever it might be, just get in touch and we can help with making that idea happen.

We can also help with advertising, advertorial, or spreading the word about a community initiative like Jenifer Parker’s Family-Friendly Meditation Circle.

This new expansion in The Yoga Lunchbox gets me pretty excited actually, and it’s reminded me of the power of accepting change and letting go so we can create space for the new to flower.

So as I watch the leaves turn, and eventually fall from that tree outside my window, I’m staying mindful of those things in my life it’s time to let go of – ideas, relationships, place and things.

Who know’s what may flower come the Spring?

Namaste,

Kara-Leah