Blazing!

January 1, 2024

As we enter a new year, we are excited to dig deeper into our purpose at WhistleStop Acres. We’ve spent the last year on social media sharing glimpses into the daily life of the ranch with our animals.  We feel it is important for people to know our animals and our relationship with them as a foundational point to who we are professionally.  It has been a joy to introduce some of our daily antics and experiences with our four-legged family. We also shared how WhistleStop came to be and the meaning behind the name, the inspiration for the purpose, and the personal commitment we hold to ensuring this endeavor is impactful.  We are confident you have some insight into those foundational things, so we are going to shift our focus directly into that purpose to build community, sustainability, and personal growth.  We hope you will be able to come to this blog to find opportunities, resources, information, and inspiration to foster the connection within yourself and with others that can lead to your very best life.. and we hope it leads you to the ranch, where the best of what we have to offer happens in person.

 Today’s inspiration is this January 1, 2024 sunset.  If you know anything about me, you know I am addicted to sunsets.  I am a shameless sunset chaser and it is rare that I don’t stop to linger when that time of day occurs.  I have seen some amazing sunsets filled with color and artistry that could not be created by a human hand.  When I paused to watch the first sunset of 2024, it honestly wasn’t the most spectacular.  It was gorgeous, of course, but it didn’t yield a sky of varying shades of purples, pinks, oranges, and blues.  It was consistently and vibrantly orange.  As I took it in, I reflected on what that sunset could mean for the year 2024.  Then it hit me.

The sky looked like it was ablaze from a sweltering inferno just over the horizon.  The fiery ball drifted out of sight, dropping just below the silhouettes of trees across the ranch, creating a rich, deep orange afterglow that contrasted the backdrop of trees, slightly moving in the breeze.  Staring at that piercing glow, I thought, “That’s it!  2024 is not sneaking in.  It’s coming in as a fiery blaze commanding our attention!”  As I pondered the setting sun and that glowing, orange, radiance, I felt a determination rise up in my soul that said, “This is a year to meet each day head on, in a blaze of glory.  This is a year to not settle for anything less than my best and encourage others to do the same.  This is the year we are going to set ablaze (symbolically, of course) all the things that hold us back… fear, judgement, trauma, hurt… and we are going to let knew things grow in their place. 

I have felt a distinct struggle growing in many I interact with, for many different reasons.  Some of them are very real, tangible things, while others are the inner thoughts and feelings creating internal, personal havoc on the person.  The world is in a difficult place and our access to the pain swirling all around is at our fingertips at all times.  It is more and more difficult to center ourselves as we are bombarded with not only our own struggles, but with the struggles, both real and fictionally created through social media, in a constant flow.  The combinations of those are weighing us down from the inside out.

However, life is short, and it is not meant to be spent in a state of stress, fear, and cortisone overload; rather it is meant to be spent in joy, peace, and hope.  This is our year to intentionally work to rebound fully from the pandemic; to face our fears; to meet our hurts head on; and to do the work on whatever trauma impacting our mind, body, soul, and spirit.  It is time to move past the blaze and begin to experience the lushness of the greenery that only comes after everything is charred. 

WhistleStop Acres is a healing place.  It is a place to find ourselves as we reconnect to nature, as well as a place to reconnect to others in a way that is healthy and intentional; all while we care for nature and develop sustainability skills that free us from the captivity that comes with failing to do our part to care for the world we live within. 

I can’t wait to see how this ranch and the opportunities here… ranging from individual therapy, to group therapy and retreats, to community events for the simplicity of joy itself… sets those negative things aflame to usher in the very best for those who join us out here.  I am actively doing the work within me and look forward to helping you do the same.

 See you at the Ranch!

Robin