Keep the Spirit Moving – How to Survive The End of the Festival!
March 27, 2014
The Party’s over, but the Party has only just begun! Now the Festival has ended (and the rain, tears, action and excitement) – here are six ways to keep the Bali Spirit burning by turning what you learned into action.
The lawns are empty now, the steamers coming down.. the Bali Spirit Festival is over, but its ripples are riding on – all over the world – as this year’s guests take their pots of gold from Ubud to nations, family, friends and workplaces all over the planet.
In festival circuits everywhere, the post-party blues is a well-known gremlin. It can sneak into your life after peaks in intensity, excitement and connection – even after tough journeys, break-throughs, break-downs and adventures like the one we’ve just taken together. They call it ‘the blue hole’ – a strange, sometimes lonely spell, after all the magic.
But FEAR NOT – post-Festival blues is nature’s way of inviting you to slow down, dive deep into the well and allow the lessons, connections, releases and insights to that slow, mysterious work of true transformation.
Festival Director, Nadine McNeil says, “You’ve just been through an extraordinary experience which may leave you feeling raw, vulnerable and just plain exhausted. Given the depth of the Bali Spirit Festival this is not unusual.” She just packed her bags for a quiet spell out of town, and many of the presenters, veterans of events, have scampered off to find quiet places of their own to give space for the medicine to do its thing.
Here are tips from our favourite yogis, leaders and healers on how to Surf the Blue Hole, and keep the Spirit alive all year:
1. Slooooow down baby! Shifting gears is vital after the Festival. High energy, stimulation, crowds, activity and excitement are part of the feast of offerings, but getting the most out of what you experienced means letting it settle. Use your practices – you know what to do – meditate, connect to your breath, avoid stimulants, support your nervous system to shift gears and spend as much time as you can in nature, quietly, to let your body, mind and spirit come back to centre. Yogi and massage therapist, Gwyn Williams, “after the huge flame of a Festival, you need to return to the quieter, gentle flame in your own heart – tend that – it is where you joy, your love and your god reside.”
2. Allow the wobble If you do feel over, or under-whelmed post-Festival, then do yourself a
loving favour, and admit it. Resisting how you really feel, blocking messages from your body or your emotional systems is the worst possible way of going through any process. Researcher, Brene Brown, says learning and change are breakthrough experiences that can cause our deep fears and anxieties to come to the surface – just as we’re set for great personal insight. Head toward the Feelings. Don’t be afraid of whatever comes up – tears, loneliness, boredom, enthusiasm, a lost feeling or craving for stimulation – accept everything, fear nothing and make space for self expression.
loving favour, and admit it. Resisting how you really feel, blocking messages from your body or your emotional systems is the worst possible way of going through any process. Researcher, Brene Brown, says learning and change are breakthrough experiences that can cause our deep fears and anxieties to come to the surface – just as we’re set for great personal insight. Head toward the Feelings. Don’t be afraid of whatever comes up – tears, loneliness, boredom, enthusiasm, a lost feeling or craving for stimulation – accept everything, fear nothing and make space for self expression.3. Write it out Mixed emotions? Write a letter to yourself, to a friend, to your yoga mat or your childhood cat – pour it all out: how you feel, what you loved, what you learned, what you struggled with, what you miss, what you want to take away with you and what you want to leave behind, surrender, let go of on the other side of Bali Spirit. These writing processes can be powerfully cathartic, and revealing – here’s the rules:
- create a safe, quiet space for at least an hour
- just write! pout it all out, everything that comes, keep the pen moving, don’t stop- no editing, no judgement, no being ‘nice’ and no worries about spelling – make up words if you want to.. just keep writing
- if you get stuck repeat the same lines over and over until something new comes up
- write for at least half an hour, and try it every day for a week – you will be amazed how brilliant you are at getting t the bottom of your own story and releasing, discovering and inspiring yourself as you go.
4. Let the Magic move you However you sum up your Festival, there is no doubt you are left with a cup that’s
over-flowing. You might be brimming with excitement, action and energy, but here’s a little secret… many of our friends tell us that for a week or so afterwards they experience a sort of hangover-effect. This is another normal reaction to a life-changing event – so don’t freak out: IT’S ACTUALLY A GOOD SIGN! Create space around you, be vulnerable with yourself, in nature and with others you trust. Watch out for tendencies to drown any discomfort in beer or muffins or super-food smoothies… let the forces of serendipity support you, they work in ways you can’t imagine. As one yoga teacher told me, “I found myself feeling unhinged and incomplete at the end of the festival. The following day, quite serendipitously I had the opportunity to engage in some meditation, story-telling and breath-work with some new- found friends. It made all the difference!”
over-flowing. You might be brimming with excitement, action and energy, but here’s a little secret… many of our friends tell us that for a week or so afterwards they experience a sort of hangover-effect. This is another normal reaction to a life-changing event – so don’t freak out: IT’S ACTUALLY A GOOD SIGN! Create space around you, be vulnerable with yourself, in nature and with others you trust. Watch out for tendencies to drown any discomfort in beer or muffins or super-food smoothies… let the forces of serendipity support you, they work in ways you can’t imagine. As one yoga teacher told me, “I found myself feeling unhinged and incomplete at the end of the festival. The following day, quite serendipitously I had the opportunity to engage in some meditation, story-telling and breath-work with some new- found friends. It made all the difference!”5. Connect Is there anyone you really connected with at the festival? Follow up, reach out – establish that bond sooner than later. Gwyn says, “in the end, its all about connection – the depth, time and quality we give to whoever we are with, where-ever we are, in the most present way we can: this is how you turn the magic into real life joy and peace.”
6. Do one truly beautiful thing We all know a huge part of the power at Festivals is the supercharge in creativity we share in. We feast of the fruits of others’ creative adventures, and stimulate and share our own creativity – an expression of our true spirit, connection to the divine and personal joy. Outside of the Festival it can be a little disorienting to know how, where, when and in what ways to express your creative spirit so here’s the thing – just do one beautiful thing every day for a week – here are some ideas:
- write a short letter of gratitude to somebody every day
- pay for the car behind you when you go through a toll gate on your way to work
- buy a friend who needs it a massage – out of the blue – and give it anonymously
- throw a picnic
- take cupcakes to work
- give something lovely away to somebody who will adore it
- fill your house with flowers
Random acts of sweetness in the world are their own reward, and a magical way of inviting love, trust and beauty to support you on your way.
Written by : Jade Richardson