Two Strangers at the Park

I have been craving a good writing session with myself in my sanctuary. For me, this looks like an evening of dimmed lights, burning my favorite candles, and soft background music that allows me the space to think. Sure, I may be able to recreate that environment as I please, but I refuse to force myself to write.

Writing is a sacred form of liberation for me that I tapped into some years ago, and have recently decided to share with y’all, with the world. Writing is form of expression that I never really knew I needed until I began releasing my thoughts in a formed manner. Most of which began in the notes of my iPhone, during a moment where God was merely downloading information quicker than my red painted fingernails could keep up with.

My unsolicited advice for the day:

Always trust yourself and your intuition. It’s the only thing we know for certain.

I had every intention of waking up this morning, grabbing an iced latte from my local spot, and taking Aspen to the beach. I’ve been working on rewiring the way I think about money, so I decided to make coffee at home, and just enjoy a slower morning as opposed to rushing out the door to start my day.

Half way to Malibu, my gut told me to check the weather - because I’ve finally learned that just because it happens to be sunny in LA, it doesn’t mean that the beach won’t be cold and gloomy. And that it was, 50 degrees and partly cloudy - to be exact. Craving a sun-kissed day, I turned the car around and decided that the park sounded like the next best thing.

We find a spot under a couple of palm trees, set up shop, and we’re living the dream at 11:30am on a Friday. (By “we”, I do mean Aspen and I, btw.) Not long after getting comfortable, I hear a voice from a gentleman, asking, “May I join you?”. He was cool and collected, and his salt & pepper hair reassured me that he, too, had some stories to tell under the sun. I had the mental capacity for a conversation with a stranger, and so I invited him to sit down and join us.

Four hours and a strawberry milkshake later, I didn’t regret it.

In the midst of our flowing conversation, a man approaches us and he’s got three cameras hanging on his body. He speaks, “I’m with the LA Times, we’re doing an article on the heatwave and I’d love to take a few candids of you all, and potentially use one in tomorrow’s paper”. I look at my new friend, and we both agree to be photographed. Mind you, I’m in a little red bikini, and he’s not only topless, but noticeably older than I am. So if you see Aspen, and I on the front page of the paper, looking like a couple of sugar-babies - it’s us, grab a copy lol.

One of my favorite things about myself is that I can talk to anyone. I get that from my mama, she’d talk to a wall if it would talk back and I love that she never meets a stranger. You’ll never regret diving into those small moments in time where genuine human connection takes place. That’s the real magic, divine timing.

Follow the light, always.

Laik xo

A playlist that’s old to me, new to you, and has been on repeat all day.

https://open.spotify.com/playlist/3AMMshSrZdLBhW2w8GhSDK?si=Xd359wDfRuKa9LIvJQ4GpA