why intention matters | bac massage therapy

Why intention matters

If you’ve already read my book, A Curious Soul, you know that over the past year, I’ve shifted toward setting intentions for pretty much every part of my life and my metaphysical practices. Intention has become the thread that weaves through everything I do: how I begin my day, the energy I bring into my treatments, the stones I choose to wear, and the practices I lean into. So naturally, when it came time to head out on vacation, it only made sense to set an intention for that too.

An intention is what you want to focus on, work towards, embody, experience or heal. It sets the foundation for your actions. Intentions tell the Universe where you are headed. ~ A Curious Soul, by Brien-Anne Couse-Reid

Now, I will tell you that not all of our past vacations have gone smoothly. In fact, there have been a few moments when we found ourselves travelling down some seriously bumpy roads — both literally and figuratively. But really, does any trip ever go perfectly according to plan? And maybe that’s exactly why intention matters most.

Because if you set the intention of having a perfectly curated, Instagram-worthy vacation, what happens when it pours rain, plans go sideways, locations are closed for the season, and everyone gets just a little too much together time? Chances are, you’re going to end up disappointed and likely even a little irritated with your travel companions.

So, for the first time ever I chose to set an intention for our trip. 

My intention wasn’t about deciding exactly minute by minute how I want the trip to unfold. It was about deciding how I wanted to move through my vacation and how I wanted it to feel in the end — even when it unfolded differently than I imagined.

I decided to set a more generalized intention for this trip, with the aim to avoid disappointment and irritation returning home with me. My impression of the trip would no longer be tied to everyone enjoying themselves, or everyone getting along and being happy, or how successful we were at checking things off our list, or how excited people were about things I wanted to see, or had found to do, or making sure that there was something for everyone to experience. It created space for people to be in a bad mood, or be tired, or hangry, or need a little time to themselves, or to choose not to go on an adventure.

Really my intention created space for us to be human. And anything that happened beyond my intention was either icing on the cake or had no bearing on the experience.  

​And let me tell you, that it made a huge difference! 

​What was my intention?

I intend to spend time with my parents and sister, seeing mountains, tall trees, and making memories with my husband and kiddos

And guess what ... that's exactly what happened. But also so much more! 

We didn’t always do things together or agree on what we should do — and we certainly didn’t completely escape the occasional irritation. But we did stand in awe together, completely out of breath with our legs burning, at the end of a ridiculously hard 0.8 km hike to a waterfall and then again to a mountain lake viewpoint. We hiked a mountain, 10km one way, going up 580m in elevation to the lookout near the top together. We cracked up laughing together at my nine-year-old niece’s tour guide commentary over the walkie-talkies. We ran together to capture the mountain reflections on a calm turquoise lake. We tested the icy waters of glacier runoff together. We played Canasta together, collected stones together, and sat quietly by the fire in the evenings together.

It wasn’t about doing everything together as a group of 11 + 1 dog. It was about being present enough to recognize the moments we experienced, whether it was 3, 6, 9, or 11 of us together on an adventure — and then sharing or reminiscing with the rest of the group over dinner.

​Setting the intention the way I did, almost made our vacation fool proof. The weather didn't matter, what we did didn't matter, who we did it with didn't matter — because it was all time spent in the mountains and tall trees with my sister, parents, and a few other crazies, and nothing could take away from that.

So before your next vacation, maybe spend a little less time thinking about how you want everything to go and a little more time thinking about how you want to feel while you’re there.

What do you want to bring with you? More presence? More connection? More laughter? A little more patience when everyone has spent way too much time together?

Set an intention for the trip — not as another expectation it has to live up to, but as something you can come back to when the plans change, the rain starts, someone gets cranky, or the ridiculously short hike turns out to be ridiculously hard.

Because intention won’t make your vacation perfect. It can, however, remind you to notice what’s happening in between all those imperfect moments — the laughter over the walkie-talkies, the race to catch a reflection on the lake, the stones tucked into your pockets, and the quiet evenings around the fire.
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And sometimes, those are the moments you end up bringing home with you.

PS. Don't forget to check out my book for more information on intention setting and SO much more!