Peace Community: Katie Shim

My name is Katie and #MyCanada is finding greatness in everyday moments. It's not about having one awesome thing happen and then you thrive off that energy for a bit, perhaps experience a high, come off of it and wait for it to happen again. It's about cultivating that creative energy, that consciousness in a sustainable way so you can live your life fully, truly, patiently, and authentically, everyday.

"What you seek is seeking you."

What you seek is seeking you. I've been having a lot of consistent blissful days filled with heart-to-hearts and soul talks. Yoga and climbing. Good food and good friends. I looked back in my journal and on the first day of August, I wrote out what I wanted my life to look like: "bliss, exercise, interaction with others, growth, reading, self-care, collaborative projects, creating, walks, health + wellness, stretching, achievement of something difficult, long-term goals, feelings being honoured, shared experiences, traveling, sunshine, independence, trying new things, being comfortable with uncertainty, lifting others up, and abundance." As I was driving to hang out with a friend yesterday, it dawned on me that I WAS living this life, right now, truthfully and authentically. Without fully consciously realizing it, I had been working towards this for the past two months or so. My YouTube channel was underway and my Instagram feed breathed adventures. I was spending a lot more time outdoors in nature doing Yoga. I was connecting with people consistently—through my job as a Casting Camera Operator and in my own life. My heart and soul are happy and I find myself feeling high on life. What you seek IS seeking you. It's really beautiful to reflect on how writing down things manifests them in your real world. Magical. As one of my favourite authors, Paulo Coelho from The Alchemist said, “There is one great truth on this planet: whoever you are, or whatever it is that you do, when you really want something, it's because that desire originated in the soul of the universe... The soul of the world is nourished by people's happiness.” “When you want something, all the universe conspires in helping you to achieve it.” So as we approach the end of the week with Mercury back from retrograde, check in with yourself. Seek your truth and be fearless in knowing what you want. What do you seek? This question just made me realize how proud I am to be able to identify as a Canadian. #MyCanada to me looks a lot like seeking adventure, truth, compassion, and living life mirroring the pace of nature. Slower, patient, and trusting. If we are kind to ourselves and live our lives embracing what is around us, then comes the greatness in everyday moments. It looks like human connection, outdoors, kindness, and maybe a beavertail / poutine thrown in there too.

"If we are kind to ourselves and live our lives embracing what is around us, then comes the greatness in everyday moments."

The concept of chasing my passion means seeking connection with myself and living life in alignment to my values. I'm a strong believer that one needs to address these things in order to live their life passionately, honestly, and authentically. I've been having quite a few conversations with some beautiful souls and time and time again, this topic has come up. How do you figure out what you want to do? How do you go after your passion? I learned from a mentor of mine that there is always too much time for a job, yet there is never enough time for a career. What does that mean? A job will always leave you feeling like there's so much time to go. Two more days until the weekend. Three more hours until we're done the day. Thirty minutes until lunch. A career though will leave you feeling like there's never enough time to do what you need to do. A career is something that's sustainable. That makes you feel excited to do what you do. That jolts you awake in the morning and makes you excited to live. A career, in ways, should be synonymous with your passion. How do you find that? You take a look at how you want to live your ideal day. So many people I know look for jobs, trying to find criteria that matches them. It needs to be the other way around. We don't have to find a job where we fit it. A career needs to fit us. So you need to ask yourself: what do you want your life to look like? What does your ideal day look like? Who do you want to be in it? Where does this happen? How does it feel? Until we address these questions and develop a strong sense + connection to ourselves, that when we can really start chasing our passions. It might not even feel like chasing / work because by then you have done the work to open yourself to the possibilities of what will come your way. Live your life in alignment with your values. What you seek is seeking you.